Eternal Scars
by Munchkincat
Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they sill stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise... and Data may not survive the ordeal. Chapter 9 is now up! :) My story
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

Rating: PG-13

**  
  
Eternal Scars  
  
**

The first thing Data noticed was the smell.The acrid smell of burning circuits reached his olfactory sensors, engulfing this circuitry and forcing his eyes open. It took point three seconds for Data to realize that he had been unconscious.He then realized that it was his own arm that was burning. His left forearm had a gaping wound; his artificial skin gone, exposing his wiring and the one wire that had short-circuited and set a small spark. Quickly, he covered his left arm with his cupped right hand, depriving the flame of oxygen and putting it out. Checking his internal chronometer, his files told him that he had been unconscious for twenty-four minutes and two seconds. 

"What has happened?" he asked out loud, more to himself than anyone else.

Data then stood up, taking in the scene around him. He was inside an enclosed solid structure. Black pipes and wiring covered the enclosure, making sinister wallpaper. Immediately, Data realized where he was: a Borg Cube.

* * *

"We defeated them!" Captain Jean-Luc Picard shouted, "I took the Borg Queen's mechanical spine in my hands and split it in two!" 

Picard's hands repeated the movement he had done two years ago, only this time, his hands trembled as he did so and there was no satisfaction when he made the mock-break movement with his hands.

"How the hell is she alive?"

Picard's question was not answered. All senior officers in the Observation Deck sat in grave silence. Gerodi's right hand made an involuntary movement to the empty seat beside him.

"More importantly," First Officer Will Riker said, "how do we get Data back?"

Picard's thoughts raced back to the last few hours; though they seemed to last an eternity.

The Enterprise was responding to a breach in the Neutral Zone, though they did not know who had crossed the line.

"Why can't the Romulans just give up?" Riker asked, assuming the intruders were the aliens who had time and again crossed into neutral territory.

However, when the Enterprise reached the Neutral Zone, noting seemed out of the ordinary. All that lay before the crew of the Enterprise was a familiar black space speckled with stars. The emergency siren blared in everyone's ears and the red lights flashed on and off as the red alert Captain Picard enabled continued.

"Sensors show no trace of a Romulan Warbird or aerial craft of any kind," Data said.

After a few moments of silence (except for the red alert), Picard's tense gazed turned into one of annoyance.

"Lower shields," he said, "Cancel red alert."

Worf, the Klingon security officer behind the archway, pressed a touch pad key, stopping the alarm, which enveloped the Bridge in silence.

"Maybe a false alarm?" Riker suggested.

"It seems so, Number 1… I wonder…"

But Picard wasn't able to finish his thought. Instantly, everything happened at once. In a split second, the Bridge's silence was broken by a foreboding hum. On the Bridge, eight light green cylindrical groups of molecules descended, arranging themselves back to their original forms: the Borg. Data, stationed at Ops, found himself surrounded by three Borg, the rest were scattered throughout the Bridge, aiming their weapon-assembled arms at the nearest Federation officer.

Before anyone's shock could wear off, the three Borg that surrounded Data roughly pulled him to his feet. Data struggled to wrestle away, but as he pulled his right arm away, the Borg to his left grabbed his left arm, gripping it with such force, his artificial skin tore. The other Borg used that opportunity to force his free arm behind his back and beam him away. As they did so, the other Borg disappeared from the Bridge, dissolving away in a beam-out.

This all happened in a matter of five seconds.

"Shields up!" Picard shouted as Data was being beamed away, "Red alert! Arm photon torpedoes!"

The emergency signal blared throughout the Enterprise , signaling the presence of the enemy. In the viewscreen on the Bridge, the starry black space wavered as if it were desert air in intense heat. Slowly, a Borg Cube revealed itself, before shooting at the opposing ship with an assault of light green lasers.

Just as the Enterprise was about to return fire, however, the lumbering Borg Cube glowed emerald before it sped away in a blurry streak, leaving the stunned crew of the Enterprise in its wake.

* * *

Data did a quick self-diagnostic and found that he was not badly injured. His arm has a few loose connections from the tear, but he had plenty of backup wiring to compensate. He checked his uniform and found that it had been stripped of his communicator. One thousand and three questions ran through his processor, searching for answers. How is it possible that the Borg are still alive? How were the Borg able to obtain a cloak? These were just some of the answers he was searching for as he took a few steps forward. He was stopped, however, by a forcefield, which buzzed in protest. 

As if cued by the forcefield, four Borg appeared around the corner, their robotic feet echoing down the hall. As soon as they lowered the forcefield, Data launched his attack. Using his electronic strength, he shoved his right elbow into the leading Borg's chest, forcing it to the ground. The other three advanced around him, but he held his own. He shattered the left eyepiece cover of the second Borg while crushing the third Borg's arm. The last, he dealt heavy blows with his feet and arms, but not without sustaining another slash on his arm. As soon as the final Borg hit the floor, he ran.

Data's internal memory banks scanned for a map of the Borg Cube. His last few encounters with the Borg allowed him to eliminate the guessing on some corridors. However, even he had not ventured in every corner of the Cube. The room he had been in had only one tunnel leading up to it. He followed it as far as he could, hoping it led to something useful. He had not been in this section of the Cube before.

His hopes were dashed, however, in just a few minutes. The one tunnel led to a large cavernous bay. Around the perimeter were Borg, all connected to the collective. A single structure stood in the middle. Data recognized it instantly. It was the table he had been bound to when he was captured by the Borg.

The one tunnel he had come from was sealed off by a forcefield, trapping him inside. One of the Borg disengaged from the collective's mechanical sleep, its eyes snapping open. It advanced toward Data like a shark honing in on its prey. Slowly, it made its way to the android, aiming its weapon laden arm at the android.

Data prepared himself, ready to break its arm or leg, whichever came first. However, when the Borg was a foot away, an unfamiliar beam shot out of the Borg's arm, landing squarely on Data's chest. The shot was an electron charger that intensified electric signals. Data immediately collapsed to the ground, his own body signals working against him. His body twitched uncontrollably until it finally shut down.

* * *

Data regained consciousness only to find himself strapped to the same restraints the Borg held him captive in three years ago. 

Data pulled his arms, trying to free them from the shackles. But it was one of the few restraints that even an android could not escape from. Using sensors, the lighted shackles measured the strength of the being trapped inside and strengthened accordingly. Although from his past experience, Data knew the shackles were too strong for him to break free from, this didn't stop him from trying. His android senses knew the effort was fruitless, but something inside him told him to at least try.

"That won't do you any good," came a bodiless voice. The voice echoed around the large chamber. Data recognized it instantly. It was the Borg Queen.

As if on cue, the Borg Queen emerged from the darkness across the other end of the chamber. Her seductive voice and nonchalant tone were hauntingly familiar.

Data surveyed his captor as she advanced toward him, her pale, soulless skin almost glowing in the black chamber.

"I've been waiting a long time, Data."

Millions of questions bombarded Data at once. But Data chose to ask the one he found most curious first.

"How is it possible that you are still alive?"

"Ever the inquisitive android, aren't you, Data? But I didn't come for you to answer your questions. In fact, you are going to answer mine. Give me the security codes for the Enterprise ."

Data stayed silent, surveying his captor's face. To even his surprise, the Borg Queen smiled. Her red lips curled upward revealing her brilliantly white teeth.

"I thought you would do that," she said, still smiling, "You see, Data, the last time we met, I gave you a gift… human flesh. I asked for you to join the collective, but you refused. Even when I gave you something you had longed for ever since you were activated."

"Grafting human flesh on my exterior does not make me human," Data pointed out, "And I will not join the Borg collective"

Casually, the Borg Queen made her way to one of the Borgs on the perimeter of the chamber. She extended her right hand, palm up. At once, the Borg's eyes snapped open. It pushed at button on its arm and out slid a device which, once it fell onto its palm, I handed it to the Borg Queen, who closed it in her hand.

"My memory banks cannot be forcibly removed," Data reminded.

"That's what you think…"

The Borg Queen turned to Data. She rested her chin on her left hand and her gin got wider as her eyes focused on the android.

[Bloop]

In point four seconds, a flood of emotions hit Data's positronic brain, pushing out the questions he was analyzing so methodically. It was as if Data had realized where he was. He looked wildly around, as if his sensors could not keep up with his optical inputs. His positronic brain filed back to the times he found himself in the Borg Cube, none of which were pleasant. He counted twenty seven Borg around the perimeter. Data's breathing quickened; at the time, he did not know whether his body needed more oxygen to cool his internal body temperature, or if it was a behavior of his human friends that he mimicked.

"You… have turned on… my emotion chip," Data said, his behavior visibly changed. He had turned from a calm, processing android, to a nervous, fearful being. New to emotions, Data did not like the way his emotion chip flooded his processing and forced him to face a barrage of unfamiliar inputs. Although he turned on the chip from time to time, it was something he was still very new to, and so, he regulated its usage with great care. He tried with all his strength to turn the chip off, but the Borg Queen had taken full control of it. It was as if an invisible forcefield had wrapped itself around his emotion chip. Every line of code Data processed to turn the chip off was blocked; even emergency subroutines did not work.

"Yes," the Borg Queen said matter-of-factly, "except this time I won't be so generous. I let you get away last time by giving you what you wanted. Now, _I'm going to try a different tactic_."

The Borg Queen enunciated the last few words relishing them as if they were a sweet fruit.

She stepped toward Data, keeping her right hand enclosed around the device the Borg had given her. When she came close enough to touch Data, finally revealed what was in her hand. Opening her fist, she revealed what looked like a short electronic rod. With the touch of a button on the rod, a blade shimmered into existence from the end of it. The rod had now become the handle of a ten inch, serrated titanium alloy knife.

Data's eyes widened, his optical inputs taking in as much as they could around him while focusing on the weapon. Fear gripped the android and he pulled at his restraints, desperately trying to set himself free. But the restraints strengthened even further, tightening their hold on Data's wrists and ankles.

"Now, Data…" the Borg Queen said sweetly. She then raised the knife high and slashed it across Data's right thigh, cutting a deep wound.

"AUUUUGHHHH!!!!"

Sheer pain surged into Data, coursing throughout his leg and pulsating to the rest of his body. The knife had cut through several layers of wiring, exposing his inner circuitry. The colored lights in his wound blinked and flickered wildly. Data tried to cover and protect the wound, but he could not move his hands. Slowly, his lubricant fluid leaked out from his thigh.

Data took a deep, shuddering breath, reeling from the undeniable sting. Having felt pain only a few times since he had been activated, it was an emotion he still could not fully understand. However, it was also an emotion he did not wish to explore.

"Now…" the Borg Queen brought her lips up to the android's ear, whispering seductively, "give me the security codes to the Enterprise ."

Data swallowed hard, instructing his positronic net to upload images in his life, the construct of the Enterprise , possible moves in a game of 3D chess, anything to distract him from his current state. However, all he could focus on were the predatory eyes of the Borg Queen and the weapon she holstered at her side.

_  
  
To be continued… _


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

"I'm waiting…" the Borg Queen said, drumming her fingers along the side of the table.

Data stayed silent, though his quickened breathing seemed to echo around the bay.

The Borg Queen grit her teeth, then brought the serrated knife down across Data's right arm, slicing a deep cut.

Thousands of severed electronic signals fired at once, sparking at the frayed ends of Data's internal wires. His hand required several complicated programming to move each finger, requiring more wiring than his leg. His right arm burned as if he had laid it on the red coils of a twentieth-century stove.

"AUUUGHHH!!!"

Data cried out once again, his electronic signals intensifying. He balled his hands into fists, trying to bear the pain.

"This'll all stop if you just give me the codes," the Borg Queen said, her voice eerily soothing.

Data struggled to shake his head. Even as his fears were pushing, urging him to say the one thing the Borg Queen wanted, everything else inside of him kept those precious codes inside.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Captain Picard," Admiral Vincennes said, "but there's no sign of any Borg Cube within one-hundred thousand kilometers of any Starbase.

Captain Picard sighed. He stood in his Ready Room, staring at the image of the admiral on his laptop. He had doubted Starfleet could offer any more information, but that didn't stop him from trying.

"We'll continue scanning for Borg Cubes," the admiral continued, "the Federation is working on an attack plan in case any come near. In the meantime, you are instructed to keep within communication range of Starbase 54."

"What?!"

Now it was the admiral's turn to sigh. He had known how the captain would react to the orders.

"Captain _you are not to go any further than communication range of Starbase 54_. We cannot afford to lose contact with you. Starbase 54 is the Starfleet base at the border of explored space. Any further than that is unfamiliar territory. You don't know what's out there!"

"I know that the Borg Cube holding my second officer is out there!"

"A starship in unfamiliar territory would be a sitting duck to a Borg Cube. You'd be no match for it. You yourself said the Cube now has the ability to cloak and attack within a few seconds!"

"We were caught by surprise," Picard replied, breathing deeply to keep his anger under guard, "I am not going to just sit here while Commander Data is in harm's way."

"You may be willing to put your life at risk, but I can't let you put all the lives on board the Enterprise at risk. Starfleet is not willing to go _hunting_ for the Borg," the admiral emphasized the word hunting as if it were completely ludicrous.

"Fine!" Picard said sarcastically, "We'll just sit here while a dedicated officer of Starfleet lies in the hands of the Borg."

"Don't patronize me! We have lost countless officers to the Borg. Every time I heard another life lost to those wretched things, my heart sinks…"

"So what're we going to do to save Data?" the captain asked, stared down at the admiral.

"Umm..." Admiral Vincennes hesitated, suddenly very interested in inspecting an invisible spot on his table.

"You mean, there's no plan to rescue him?!"

"I'm sorry captain," the admiral replied, "his mouth suddenly dry, "but sometimes the good of the many outweigh the good of the one."

Captain Picard huffed in disgust. He was getting awfully tired of that quote.

"What if the one was your son… or your wife… or your daughter?"

"Captain, I know how you must feel, but…"

"You don't have ANY IDEA how I feel!" Picard roared, his voice reverberating off the Ready Room walls. He brought his face an inch away from the laptop screen, his eye bearing into the admiral's.

"If he were human or any other species, we'd be calling up the fleet, ready to go to warp in a split second. You know perfectly well that the only reason we are not going out there, is because Data is an android. And you don't give a damn. 'He is a machine, therefore he is expendable.'" Picard quoted from some of his colleagues.

"Data is _not_ just a machine. He is a colleague, a friend, and he is just as human as you and I. I'd rather die, knowing that I tried to save Data, than live, knowing that I just abandoned him in the hands of the most powerful enemy Starfleet has ever known!"

With that, Picard abruptly cut off the transmission, slamming his laptop shut. Purposefully, he strode out of his Ready Room and onto the Bridge.

All senior officers were there, looking expectantly at the captain. They were all hoping for a fleet of at least fifty starships to combat the Borg.

"Mr. Worf," he said, lowering his voice to a controlled calm, "open a channel to all on board the Enterprise ."

"Aye sir."

The controls chirped in reply.

"Attention to all onboard the Enterprise ," Picard bellowed, his voice echoing throughout every corridor and corner of the massive starship, "Starfleet has ordered the Enterprise _not_ to pursue the Borg Cube. They don't think that Data's life is worth saving, or at least, risking everyone on board for. I am about to order the Enterprise to violate a direct order from Starfleet… to save Data from the Borg. Anyone who does not wish to be on board while we pursue the Borg, report to Shuttlebay 1. Shuttles will be waiting for you to take you to Earth. Any officer who does not wish to participate in this violation, it will be so noted in your personal file and you will also have a shuttle waiting to take you home. Picard out."

As Picard made his announcement, each officer and citizen thought about their own interactions with Data. Some remembered their own lives being saved by the android. Others owed their child's life to Data. All were touched by Data's desire to be human, by his cherishing every aspect of human life they took for granted.

At 0800 hours, Picard and Geordi made their way down to Shuttlebay 1. The doors hissed open, revealing the cavernous bay, nothing more.

Geordi scanned the bay with his optical implants; searching for a citizen or officer who may be hiding. However, not one person (other than Geordi or Picard) was in the bay.

In the distance, a set of double doors on the opposite side of the shuttlebay whirred open and a large group of officers and citizens, human and non-human, made their way to the captain and engineer.

"The shuttles can take six people," Picard instructed, "you should land on Earth in twenty minutes. The Enterprise will make sure everyone lands safely."

One officer stepped forward and stood at attention. Picard recognized him instantly. It was Timothy, a little boy who lost his parents on the research vessel Vico. When Picard met the boy, he was traumatized by the death of his parents, thinking he had caused the vessel's destruction. Timothy had warmed up to Data, admiring his lack of emotions and Data had cared for the boy as if he were his own son. In some miraculous way, the android who was incapable of emotions cared for the boy, and the boy cared for Data. Eventually, Timothy was able to feel again and understand that he was not to blame for his parents' death. He and Data had been friends ever since. Now, the boy named Timothy had grown up to become the fine young officer of Starfleet known as Ensign Tim.

"We're not here to take the shuttles sir," Tim said, nodding to Captain Picard, "we are here to help the Enterprise fight the Borg and rescue Data, in any way it can."

Geordi's lips turned into a wide grin from ear to ear.

"Are any of you here to take the shuttle?" Picard asked, making sure this wasn't too good to be true.

The group of officers and citizens looked at one another. Not one being stepped forward.

* * *

"Get in there!" the Borg Queen yelled.

Two Borg had each of Data's arms gripped tightly to their sides. As soon as they reached the chamber at the end of the corridor, they tossed the android inside like an unwanted rag doll. Data landed hard on the floor and his injuries magnified in pain in protest.

Bzzt A forcefield buzzed into place, trapping Data in the small chamber. But Data was relieved. After three hours, thirteen minutes and ten seconds, the Borg Queen grown tired of the interrogation, or rather, decided to come up with a different plan. After three hours, thirteen minutes and ten seconds, he was finally alone. And he would not sustain any more injuries… at least for now. Struggling to sit up, Data pushed off the floor with his left hand and leaned against the wall, wincing in pain. His right arm and leg had been torn to shreds; cuts, lacerations, and punctured wounds lined up and down his arm. The exposed wiring had finally stopped sparking. His emergency signal network rerouted the signals to the rest of his body to conserve electronic strength.

However, his right arm now sat limply at his side, having lost all function. Although his right leg fared better, he would not be able to walk without assistance. Both legs had deep wounds in them; wounds that still cried out in pain. Weakly, he lifted his left hand, which also had deep wounds. He would have the repair the damage manually. But how? He had no tools with him and it hurt to even move. Still he brought his left hand to the gaping wound in his right thigh. Gingerly, he brought a hanging piece of artificial skin over the open wound. However, his leg stung more than ever, forcing him to stop.

Tilting his head back against the wall, Data gulped several breaths of air. His input functions were now only working at forty-five percent, constricting the wiring that brought him oxygen, forcing him to breathe harder. He closed his eyes, trying to conserve what little energy he had left.

Even as his internal functions were trying to process it all, there was still a glimmer of analytic sense left in his positronic brain. Isolating that one sense, Data searched for that little glimmer of hope. It was the one time he savored and cherished being an android. He did not know whether a human would be able to think straight after enduring an interrogation like that.

Downloading an image of the Borg Queen, he analyzed it right down to its very core. From the pale haunting skin to every wire and programmed function. How was the Borg Queen able to rise out of death? Was there a weakness to her that he could hone in on?

Suddenly, an image came into his subconscious view. It was of the time he had consulted a 20th century comic to understand humor. He smiled at his own attempt at humor with "Take my Worf, please." He even laughed at how stupid the joke was and yet how funny it was at the same time. As soon as that image faded away, another took its place. It was of him playing poker with his friends, he giggled at Riker's poker face and laughed at his own attempts to read it. File after file, image after image, he went through a range of emotions, from shedding tears over the passing of Lal, his daughter, to the elation of playing with a Ba'ku child.

When the images stopped processing, curiosity took its place. He must look as if he had gone made, laughing and crying when in sheer pain. Was this his way of suffering a cascade failure? Humans have often said that their life flashes before their eyes when they are faced with death. Was this an android version of a life flashing before one's eyes?

Before he could formulate an answer, he heard the sound of footsteps and a forcefield. Opening his eyes, he saw just one Borg standing in front of him. He tried to grab its foot with his one good arm, but it was like an infant grasping an adult's leg. The Borg closed its fingers around Data's arm and hauled him up, easily overpowering the android. As the Borg half carried, half dragged Data to the now familiar and dreaded interrogation table, Data wished for a cascade failure; anything to stop the pain and punishment.

_To be continued… _


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

But just as Data thought he would be forced back onto the interrogation table, the Borg turned a right and went down a darker tunnel. The Borg Queen was waiting at the end.

"Put him here," she instructed the Borg, pointing in front of her.

The Borg dropped Data roughly on the floor. Immediately, the Borg Queen bound Data's ankles together and his wrists behind his back. This time, Data didn't even struggle. The bindings were made of the same material as the shackles on the interrogation table. Struggling would be… futile.

The Borg Queen and lone Borg stared down at the android. It was only then when Data realized that this Borg was different… it was an assimilated Romulan. At first glance, it looked like the rest of the Borg; stark-white, soulless creations. However, this Borg used to be an individual. All identity of the Romulan was wiped clean; the slight point of its ears and stray strands of hair peeking out from under its headpiece were the only indication of its past life.

The Borg Queen followed Data's eyes, which were staring at the Borg. She smiled.

"You like this Borg?" she asked, stroking the Borg's head as if it were a pet.

"It is an assimilated Romulan," Data observed, his attention momentarily diverted from his wounds.

"Yes. You see, Data, it is much easier to assimilate creatures than to… _welcome_ their culture." The Borg Queen answered, saying the last words as if it left a bad taste in her mouth, "It was much easier to obtain their cloak once this one's Warbird was assimilated."

Data thought back to how he was originally captured. The Borg had stolen a Romulan cloak and was lying in wait the whole time.

"I don't understand Data, why do you follow humans? You say that you 'do not wish to be assimilated,' and yet you follow your captain's every command. You say that you have your own free will and yet your actions are restricted by Starfleet rules and regulations. Why don't you join a better plan with myself and the Borg?"

Data had had enough. He was tired of enduring the Borg's torture and listening to her coercion. He was tired of her attempts to alienate him from his the only family he had come to know.

"I choose to serve the captain because he treats me as a friend. He accepts me for who I am and does not rob me of my individuality. You and your Borg consume civilizations, erasing all trace of their existence. Starfleet is a part of an alliance of seventy-five worlds. It is at peace with one-hundred and twenty one cultures. You and your Borg are despised, loathed throughout the galaxy and you have an alliance with none. _You tell me who has the better plan_!"

Data yelled, glaring back at the Borg Queen in defiance. Although he knew this would only provoke the Borg Queen, a part of him felt glad, even happy that he was venting his anger. He ad been a silent victim for too long. Confused only momentarily, Data filed this moment back in his memory for further analysis.

The Borg Queen's eyes widened, rage burning in her eyes. Ripping a laser off the Borg beside her, she grabbed the weapon and tore it from its arm. The assimilated Romulan's eyes faced to the Queen, but a wave of the Borg Queen's hand shut it down and it remained silent. Its purpose served, the assimilated Borg walked out of the room and into the dark hallway. Charging toward the android, the Borg Queen aimed the laser at his left shoulder. Quickly, Data rolled to the side and the Borg Queen missed her mark. Kicking his legs, Data tried to trip the Borg leader, but she easily stopped him with her foot. Overpowering Data, she dug her heel into the android's lower leg and brought the laser down to his thighs.

Now almost used to the torture, Data squeezed his eyes shut and prepared him for the pain. In a few seconds, it did. The laser cut fresh, deep wounds in his thighs and Data screamed in pain.

"AUUUGHHH!!!"

The Borg Queen stepped back, admiring her work. The fresh wounds on each thigh now leaked even more lubricant fluid. Both were breathing heavily when the Borg Queen chose to speak.

"Sit up!" she commanded.

To even her surprise, the android complied… or at least tried to. Squirming to a corner of the room, he pushed his bound feet against one wall while trying to lift his body. However, the defeated android did not have the strength.

The Borg Queen sighed and heaved the android upright. The android now faced the Borg Queen, his back against the corner. When Data looked at the standing Borg Queen, his eyes were stained with tears. He had paid dearly for his defiance. At this point, he is processes were so overwhelmed with terror, pain, and helplessness; he'd do anything to make this pain stop. Well… almost anything.

"You want to be human so much," the Borg Queen sneered, "this is _exactly _how a human would feel." She glanced at the doorway behind her and it slammed shut, isolating her and the android.

Vents on the perimeter of the room opened up and cold air flowed in. However, this was not your twenty-first century air conditioner. Data calculated the air to be at -55.3 degrees Celsius; colder than even the harshest winters on Earth's Antarctica . Under normal circumstances, the temperature would not even faze him. However, these were anything but normal circumstances. His emotion chip on at full and his legs and arms riddled with wounds, he felt every degree drop in temperature. In just two minutes, the temperature in the tiny room dropped over one hundred degrees. And it was getting colder. The cold bit and stung at every inch of his body.

Every one of Data's internal processors were firing signals at once. Some were trying to process the new sensation while others struggled to protect his gaping wounds. In a few seconds, Data began to shiver. His internal body temperature had dropped several degrees and his temperature regulator had long since shut down. His legs shook and his fingers twitched. In the shivering, his left pointer finger brushed up against something.

"Are you ready to talk?" the Borg Queen barked.

Data's finger recoiled against what he had touched. Although his hands were tied behind his back, away form the Borg Queen's view, this did not stop his tense movements.

"N-n-n-oo-o-o," he said, his shivering forcing his voice to be shaky.

Because his wrists were bound on top of each other, he was able to bend his left hand back to touch his right arm. He was surprised that his dermal sensors still functioned in the intense cold. Again, he brought his finger to what he had touched. It was one of the exposed wires in his right arm. Data tested it, hoping against all hope it would still work. He bypassed emergency subroutines that had shut down any signals to his badly injured right arm. One spark was all he needed. And in a tiny glimmer of hope, one signal found its way to the broken wire. He then brushed his finger against the wire so it jutted out at as far is it could.

"Y-y-ou will not succeed," Data continued, staring the Borg Queen straight in the eyes. He had to keep the Borg Queen talking, "The E-Enterprise will come to fi-find me."

"How are they going to find us? We're cloaked. And we're five million kilometers from where we acquired you."

Stretching his left hand as far as the restraints would allow, he then brought his thumb and forefinger to the gaping wound in his right arm. Data fought the urge to bring sigh relief when his fingers found what they were looking for: a computer chip embedded in his right arm.

"My-My wo-ounds are ve-very painful," Data shivered. Pinching his fingers around the computer chip, he prepared himself for what he was about to do. He grit his teeth as he snapped the computer chip in half, breaking it from its base in his arm. Knowing this would create an audible noise, he timed his movements perfectly. Forcing signals to spark from his new wound in his legs at the same time, he howled in pain, drowning out the sound of the breaking chip.

"Yes," the Borg Queen smiled, "this is how humans feel. This is how _pain_ feels." She beamed at the cowering android before her, relishing how he was recoiling in pain from his wounds.

Suddenly, however, the android before her began to convulse, his arms and legs thrashing wildly about. Data's eyes stared blankly ahead with no sign of consciousness. Sparks flew from every gaping wound and burning circuits melted the ice that had already formed around the android's wounds.

The Borg Queen's calculated movements finally registered shock. She knelt down beside the android, wondering if he was dying. If the android died, all secrets of the Enterprise would die with him.

Data continued to convulse, keeping the broken computer chip clasped in his left fist. Data sent signals everywhere but concentrated several signals to fire off at the bindings at his wrists. Because these bindings were part metal, they sparked and heated quickly.

The Borg Queen shut off the cold instantly, but this did not stop Data's erratic jerks. She turned the convulsing Data to his side, noticing that the shackles on his wrists were sparking. Were these bindings causing him to convulse? Not wanting to risk losing the android and thus, all the secrets he kept, she unlocked the bindings, freeing Data's hands from their restrains. Just as the Queen was about to see if Data's convulsing stopped, Data sprung into action. Using every ounce of electronic strength left in him, Data brought his left arm around the Borg Queen's head and cut the broken, jagged computer chip into the side of the Borg Queen's head so deep that it cut several wires in her head.

"AUUUGHHH!" this time, it was the Borg Queen that screamed in pain.

Working quickly, Data used his left hand to grab his right arm. He then connected the broken wire in his right arm to one of the broken wires in the Borg Queen's head… and downloaded.

The Queen pushed her hands against the fighting android, but as he downloaded, he also sucked strength from her. She no longer had the might she had just a few seconds ago. Struggling, she clawed at Data, who had her head now pinned to the floor.

The next moments seemed like an eternity. Data downloaded everything he could; from the inner workings of the Borg Queen to the circuitry of the Borg Cube, anything Data's processor could obtain was downloaded. Every byte of energy he could muster, he poured into obtaining as much information from the Queen as possible. However, the Borg Queen soon caught up with him and tried downloading from _him_. Data had anticipated this, which is why he programmed the wire to be unilateral, allowing downloading in just one direction at a time. He had also resurrected a firewall to protect his positronic brain and memories just in case. He was designed so that no one, not even the Borg Queen, could penetrate the codes that, if breached, could destroy all whom he held dear. Moments later, however, the downloading slowed until Data's downloading efforts hit error message after error message.

The Borg Queen was fighting, and as she fought, the energy Data was gaining from her, dissipated, then ceased. The Bog Queen finally shut her electronic programming from the intruder, stopping all data flow.

In an instant, the Borg Queen was upon him. Once Data has stopped downloading, her emergency programming regained the strength she needed. The Borg Queen yanked the wire that connected her to the android out, severing the tie between them. She then shoved Data off her, slamming him against the nearest wall. Releasing her life's anger on the android, she then brought her fists down at his stomach, punching over and over again. Just two minutes later, Data finally shut down. All input and output processing stopped.

The energy Data had used to fight the Borg Queen had left him exhausted. Devoid of all strength, his body collapsed. Not even having the strength to sit up, Data slumped to the side; yet he welcomed the relief from all the pain. In the few seconds before he slipped into unconsciousness, he uploaded one more firewall, one that would stay forever. Even after his death, nothing would force this android to give up the codes that, in the Borg Queen's hands, would lead to the destruction of the Enterprise and Starfleet.

* * *

The Enterprise flew cautiously in space. Although it wanted to push the warp drive to its limit, speeding in pursuit of the Borg Cube's last known direction, unfamiliar territory forced it to slow down. Once the Enterprise has left explored territory, sensors were heightened to full capacity and shields were activated; it was as if the ship were expecting a surprise attack. 

Beep beep beep

"Captain," Ensign Timothy said from Ops, "sensors are detecting a distress signal from a planet on the port side."

Ensign Timothy diverted the distress signal to the universal translator.

"Please help us!" an alien voice cried, "our planet is dying! Resources have been depleted and starvation is running rampant. Meteorites have been hitting our world, killing thousands with each hit. Any planet even within _our_ capacity of space travel has been deemed uninhabitable! We will not last much longer like this."

Picard swallowed hard. They had not gotten far when they reached the first unfamiliar aliens. Unfortunately, they needed help as well, and the Enterprise was the only ship within a day's distance. Even with the capacity of warp drive, there was still the need to be in two places at once.

Picard hesitated, staring wistfully at the direction the Enterprise was headed. He almost wished he hadn't heard the cries for help. However, Picard knew that if Data were with them, he would advise the captain to heed the distress call.

"Let's see what we can do to help them," the captain commanded.

* * *

Lines of code sped past; letters, numbers and key commands streaked by. It took three point seven seconds for Data to realize the code was floating in front of him. White lettering against a pitch black background, it was as if Data were in a strange void. And he was. Not yet able to regain consciousness, Data had entered his subconsciousness to keep from suffering a cascade failure. The android felt as if he were floating in a space with no stars. Only lines of code streaked by in front of him. 

Focusing on the lines of code, he slowed their speed so that his lethargic processor could read them. Instantly, he knew that these codes did not belong to him. Further inspection revealed the truth: it was the codes he had downloaded from the Borg Queen.

Excitedly, he read through every line of code, relishing each piece of information as if it were a sweet fruit.

Data brought up a diagnostic of the Borg Queen, comparing that with a diagnostic of the Borg from his own memory banks. One piece stood out. The two images were identical, except for one thing; this Borg Queen, this vengeful Queen that had tortured him for seemingly endless hours, had a _different_ identity code. Every electronic being, including him, had an identity code. The Borg Queen that had assimilated Captain Picard had code: 420.16. This Borg Queen had the identity code: 420.16_.2_. This was not the Borg Queen, _this was her clone_.

Data searched further into the code, surprised at how much he had downloaded in such little time. Seven point eight minutes later, Data had uncovered the Borg Queen's secret. Just a few months after her first activation, she had created a clone of herself. Unhappy with the slow pace her Borg invasion was progressing, she traveled several millions of kilometers where she left her "sister" to invade another galaxy. She created another Borg Cube for her clone and armed her with several hundred Borg.

From then on, the two touched base with one another once a month. On one transmission between the two, the Borg Queen expressed a desire to create yet another clone since her sister had been so successful. However, this was twenty-four hours before the Enterprise intercepted her plan to travel back in time and prevent first contact. Just before the Borg Queen died, her secondary programming sent an emergency message to her sister detailing the last moments of her life. Immediately, the clone had set off for the Enterprise in search of revenge of the crew that killed her sister.

Thirsting for more information, Data felt as if he couldn't read the next lines of code fast enough. In the next lines of code he then discovered he had downloaded part of the Borg Queen's knowledge of her own ship; the Borg Cube.

"Please, let me find something to use against this clone," Data pleaded to no one in particular.

* * *

"We cannot thank you enough," the alien said to Captain Picard. 

The crew of the Enterprise had just saved an alien race called the Moe from destruction. The Moe were tiny creatures that inhabited a large planet called Lownoza. The Moe looked like furry light bulbs of various colors. When they were scared, their bodies glowed, making it easy for their planet to detect when they were facing death. Thousands of Moe glowed on the surface of Lownoza as it was pelted with meteorites.

The Enterprise had managed to destroy every meteorite that threatened to hit their planet, which was in the path of a meteor shower that occurred every ten million years. Replicators on board had replenished the depleted food supply of the Moe and a carefully aimed laser unearthed new, rich Bazeeto (the Earth equivalent of soil). This would replenish the food supply for generations.

Moe 4,512,785, the Moe that had just thanked Picard, sat in the pilot's seat of his spacecraft, talking to Picard through his craft's viewscreen. The tiny spacecraft was the size of a tennis ball, but the Enterprise 's viewscreen magnified the image of the Moe crew so they wouldn't have to squint to see the creatures.

"You're very welcome, Moe 4,523…" Picard replied, unable yet again, to remember his name.

"Moe 4,512,785," the pilot Moe corrected.

"Thank God we give our children individual names," Picard thought, sighing.

As soon as the crisis on the Moe planet was resolved, Geordi, stationed at the back of the Bridge where he had uploaded an Engineering station, brought up a map of the Borg Cube's last known location.

"Captain?"

"Go ahead."

"The Borg Cube's last coordinates are just five hundred kilometers ahead. But, there are no warp traces anywhere; they died down hours ago. The Borg Cube could be anywhere within four million kilometers of here. I don't know how they traveled so fast. Even a warp 8, it'd take us months to travel four million kilometers."

Picard sighed. What were they going to do?

"There must be some other way," Geordi thought aloud.

"Excuse me, sir" Moe 2,178,521, the light blue Moe in the co-pilot's seat spoke.

Picard jerked his head up at the viewscreen. In all the stress and confusion, he had forgotten to cut the audio transmission between them and the Moe. The Moe craft was just making its descent to its now stable home planet when it overhead the worried statement of the chief engineer.

"We could not help overhearing," Moe 2,178,521 continued, "Are you in need of assistance?"

Picard hesitated before answering. However, figuring it wouldn't help to just tell them, he proceeded to explain to the Moe about Data and the Borg.

Riker shook his head ever so slightly as the captain spoke. In all honesty, how the hell could aliens smaller than the size of his fist be any help against the Borg?

"We have this," Moe 4,512,785 offered, once Picard explained what they needed. The Moe aboard the tiny spacecraft sent a visual transmission through to the Enterprise 's viewscreen. The viewscreen revealed a massive warp coil on the Moe planet, the size of five of the Enterprise 's warp coils combined.

"We have ten more of these on Lownoza," the Moe pilot explained, "They are regenerative warp coils. Use as little or as much as you want, it'll allow a ship your size to travel up to two-million kilometers an hour. One of these would be enough to fuel thousands of our ships for a lifetime. We only need five, but our engineers here went a little… warp happy. Once they discovered how to make these, they made so many, authorities had to stop them or there'd be no more room on our planet for us!"

Gerodi marveled at the image before him.

"Wow!" was all he could say as his optical implants widened.

* * *

SLAM! 

The clone Borg Queen thrust a heavy piece of equipment against the far wall where it ricocheted off and landed on the floor, dented in several places. Its glass panels shattered, raining pieces on the floor.

"DAMN IT! I was fooled again by the android!" the Queen thought, "How could I have been fooled again?!"

She clenched her fists in frustration as she replayed her mistake over and over again in her electronic brain. The android knew about her. How much? She didn't know. But whether the android downloaded for 0.01 seconds or for days, too much information was now in his possession and knowledge.

She had been too cocky. The android, knowing he had his weaknesses, had protected the information he possessed, but she had been too arrogant to bother with something so "trivial."

As much as she enjoyed watching the android squirm, as much as she wanted to use Data as a weapon against the Enterprise, her primary plan would have to be abandoned. She had to find another way to destroy the Enterprise . In the meantime, she would have to kill the being that possibly held the secret to her destruction. Come to think of it, maybe things were going better than planned.

_To be continued… _


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

"Captain," the ensign spoke, his mouth suddenly going dry, "may I speak with you?"

"Of course," Captain Picard responded, pointing Ensign Tim to the small room in front of the Bridge. As the two made their way to the captain's Ready Room, Ensign Tim wrung his hands around each other, his nervousness keeping them from staying still.

"What can I do for you, Ensign?" the captain asked as he settled down into his chair. He gestured toward the couch across the other side of his blacktop desk. Ensign Tim sat down and struggled to keep his voice from stuttering. He was a lowly Ensign asking the captain of the Enterprise to rethink his last commands; what the hell was he thinking? But he cleared his throat and forged ahead before fear could force his voice into submission.

"Sir, I know that you ordered me to stay on the Bridge in the upcoming mission, but I respectfully request to be put on the away team. The team that is going to be on the Borg Cube."

The captain took a deep breath before he spoke. He looked at the nervous officer sitting in front of him.

"Ensign, I know that you would like to help in combat, but the Borg is not just any adversary. It is the most powerful species Starfleet has ever known. I would need your navigation skills on the Bridge to keep the Enterprise safe."

"Thank you, sir. But Ensign Michaels can take my place on the Bridge. I need to be with the away team," the ensign made sure he met the captain's eyes before continuing, "Data is my friend… Actually, he's not only a friend, he's like a father to me. He and I have been there for each other when we each faced challenges. He was there when I thought I was responsible for the death of my parents. If he is in trouble… If the Borg somehow is trying to use him against us like Lore did, I can talk him out of it.

"He helped me see that I didn't kill my parents. That I'm not a bad person. Please, give me the chance to let him see that he's not one either."

* * *

When Data opened his eyes, the blinding light forced them shut again. After downloading all he could from his subconscious, what was left of his emergency subroutines forced him back into consciousness. When Data tentatively opened his eyes again, he found that it was not a blinding light; just dim light that vastly contrasted the pitch black he had seen when scanning the Borg Clone's codes.

He was lying on the floor, in the exact position he was in when the Borg Clone left him. He immediately began to shiver, and ice fell from his eyelashes. The freezing cold had been turned back on. Ice had long since solidified on every trace of moisture on his skin, robbing his body of heat.

"Cancel temperature reduction. Restore temperature to twenty one degrees Celsius. Code seven, four, eight." Data said. But the voice that came out was not his. It was the Borg Queen's voice. Every inflection, tone, and pitch were mimicked perfectly by the android.

Instantly, the cold shut off and the temperature in the room rose significantly. He didn't even think before he said it. Was it an automatic program that had kicked in, or was it… intuition? Had Data finally acted on a human emotion he had searched for so long?

Data reminded himself that he did not have much time to think about such matters. He was glad he had only mimicked voices in his friends' presence. Had he used it in his last encounter with the Borg, the Queen clone might now guard against it, knowing he had this ability. He then realized that now both his arms and legs had been shackled.

"Release arm and leg shackles," came the seductive female voice. The shackles instantly unlocked, freeing their grip on the android.

Cringing, Data slowly sat up, shifting his weight to his lower body. The ice on his skin cracked and shattered, dripping icy water down his legs. Again recalling his emergency subroutines, he brought all reserve electronic strength to his wounded legs. Bracing his arms against the walls next to him, he slowly brought himself to his feet. Once he shifted his weight to his two feet, the pain that erupted almost forced that android to his knees. The stinging surged up and down his legs. Intensified electrical signals forced the android to cringe from his open wounds. But Data knew that if he stopped now, he might never get back up again.

Scanning what he had downloaded from the Borg Queen, he searched the lines of codes for what he needed. Data had almost all he needed to stop the Borg Queen… almost. His downloads stopped just short of what he would need to deal the final deadly blow to the mechanical drone. It was almost as if the Borg leader were taunting him, laughing at his futile attempts to destroy the one enemy that had escaped from him and Starfleet so many times.

"Computer, remove forcefield and cancel security warning," the Borg Queen's voice again emanated from the android, "authorization Alpha, Circuit, Zeta."

The forcefield buzzed in reply and dissipated, crackling as it opened the only doorway that imprisoned the android. Limping, Data made his way out of the darkened chamber.

Uploading this time, a full map of the Borg Cube, he planned a route that would lead him to the main computer. Unfortunately, that same route would also force him to pass several Borg. Even with a detailed map of the Borg Cube, there was no avoiding the mechanical beings.

"As long as they are connected to the collective," Data said to himself, "they will not harm me." However, even as he thought this, somehow, he knew that he would not reach the main computer without a confrontation. The Borg didn't exactly need provocation to attack.

Making his way down the tunnel, Data tried his best to quiet his nervous breathing. He would need to make his next move as silently as possible. As he approached the mouth of the tunnel, the back of the lone Borg guard came into view. Data crept behind the Borg, biting his lower lip to keep from wincing out loud as he limped toward the machine. Suddenly, the Borg turned its head… straight into Data's left fist. The Borg's eyepiece shattered and its jaw broke at the next blow. As the Borg turned on Data, Data reached behind it and yanked the tube that connected to the Borg's headpiece. Instantly, the Borg was cut off from the collective; its emergency signal silenced. As it fell, Data cradled its dead body and laid it softly on the floor. The sound of its body hitting the ground would surely catch undue attention.

Almost instantly, he heard the pounding. Thundering footsteps echoed down the tunnel, announcing to all that the being making the noise was irate. Quickly, he ducked into a neighboring tunnel and hobbled down its length, unable to grab the weapon in time; there was no mistaking the voice that arose moments later.

"Find him," the female Borg leader said, most likely addressing a Borg that usually accompanied her. It wasn't a yell, or even an audible volume, but Data's heightened android senses heard it loud and clear. It was the cold, calculating voice of the Borg Queen, intent on seeking the prey that had escaped from her grasp.

In point zero seven five seconds, Data brought up the downloaded map of the Borg Cube with details of its wiring.

"Computer, turn emergency signal on in Quadrant four, level one." Data, mimicking the Borg Queen's voice, said. Only this time, his voice was so low, no human (or any nearby being) could have heard it. But the computer did, and it complied instantly, setting off a loud emergency signal on the opposite side of the Cube.

Data finally allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief when the pounding footsteps faded away. However, his hands still quivered and his inputs were on at full alert.

Data crept through the rest of the tunnel, not wanting to make a sound even though he knew the enemy was out of hearing distance (even for her). But after winding through several tunnels and chambers, he stopped short.

The only way to get to the main computer now would be to pass a large corridor lined with Borg. All of whom, by now, would have been alerted to the escaped prisoner.

Taking a deep breath, Data took one last look at the corridor ahead of him… and ran. Ignoring the augmented pain in his wounds, he forced his legs to carry him across the length of the corridor. He had not gotten far when several Borg blocked his path. Using his momentum, he pushed two Borg out of his way and broke the arm of the third. One tried to kick his legs out from under him, but he hurled an injured Borg at it and the two collapsed in a heap. Soon, all Borg were on top of him. Two forced his arms behind his back (even though only his left arm was functional) and the rest approached him in an all-to-familiar attack.

Concentrating, Data closed his eyes and collapsed to the floor. Just at the rest of the Borg were upon him, he sent electric signals everywhere. From his wound-riddled body to even the surface of his skin, pulsating signals were sent to all parts of his body. Finally, Data intensified these signals, using all strength he had in him.

Like all things mechanical, the Borg were made of conductive material. Everything in them electrocuted. What wasn't metal was damaged by flying sparks and error messages. Each Borg collapsed at the mercy of foreign, intensified electrical signals.

When the last Borg fell, so did the android. It took him several minutes, an eternity for an android, for Data to even gather the strength to move. The Borg Cube's main computer was just ten feet away.

Using his one good arm, Data dragged his broken body to the heart of the Borg Cube. It was a long, painful journey, and now Data finally understood why time was relative to his human colleagues. It seemed like an eternity for the android to close the distance.

When Data finally reached the main computer, he heaved himself up onto the black surface. Leaning against the panel, he focused his eyes on the controls….

"Ooommph."

Something hit Data hard across his chest. Recoiling, he was thrown back several feet, where he landed with a painful thud on the floor. Wincing, he looked up to see his attacker. It was the Borg Queen clone.

Starfleet's greatest enemy pointed a photon rifle at the android so that the end of its barrel was two inches from his face.

The Queen clone smiled, her wide grin engulfing the lower part of her face. She activated the weapon with the push of a button. The whir of rifle powering up resounded in Data's ears and all he could see was the pulsating emerald hue of its barrel…

The explosion that followed forced Data's eyes shut and the ground shook beneath him.

"What the-"

Data tentatively opened his eyes. The explosion had not come from the Queen's weapon.

BOOM!

Again the ground shook beneath him, this time more violently.

Distracted by the attack on her precious Borg Cube, the clone turned away from her prisoner to the viewscreen behind her.

* * *

"Fire!" Picard commanded.

When the Enterprise was within two hundred kilometers of the Borg Cube, she took full advantage of her newly acquired speed. The high-powered warp core glowed sapphire as the ship closed the distance between her and the Borg Cube. Even the Cube's sensors could not keep up with the speed of the Enterprise . When the Enterprise was within one hundred kilometers, the away team, standing at ready on the transporter room, was beamed instantly aboard the enemy ship. Then, the Galaxy-class ship raised shields and fired.

It didn't take long for the Borg Cube to recover from its shock. It returned fire with light green phasers. However, the Enterprise was just a blur as it dodged bullet after bullet. Each time she flew by the Borg Cube, she fired a stream of red phasers and a barrage of photon torpedoes.

* * *

The instant the away team boarded the Borg Cube, they stood ready to fire. Armed with randomizing phasers, the team hoped they would last as long as possible before the Borg adapted.

But when they fully beamed aboard, they found that this sector of Borg had not been awakened from the collective. At least not yet.

"Lovely creatures, aren't they?" Will Riker asked sarcastically.

"Ch-Charming," Ensign Tim replied, looking at the soulless creature next to him. Although he had prepared to fight Borg in his Academy training days, in the practice runs, he did not have the chills running down his spine that he did now.

Next to them, Worf stood ready for any sort of attack. Even coming from a species that seemed born to combat, Worf was unnerved. As the Cube rocked and swayed from the Enterprises' assault, Riker continued walking, amazed that these Borg still did not move even when their ship was under attack.

But his unvoiced questioned was answered when all Borg around them snapped their eyes open.

"Oh God…"

* * *

While the Borg Queen conducted the Borg Cube's defense against the Enterprise , Data inched his way to the control panel nearest him.

The Queen clone saw his movements from the blurry reflection on the overhead control panels.

"DON"T MOVE!" she shouted, aiming the photon rifle at him. A Borg came to its master and she handed the rifle to it.

"Make sure he doesn't move," she instructed her minion. Although she could have instructed her Borg to fire at the Enterprise , it was a glory she wanted to have all herself. She could destroy the enemy that had destroyed her sister, once and for all.

Data watched helplessly as the Enterprise circled the Borg Cube. The Queen's shots were getting more precise now. The thick green lasers began landing on the Enterprise 's shields each time. The Borg Queen followed the Enterprise 's blurry afterimage as it dodged bullets. Soon, she could accurately predict its next location.

* * *

"Shields are down to forty-seven percent!" Lieutenant Williams shouted over the phaser blasts and emergency signal.

Emergency sirens blared throughout the Enterprise and its light bathed the ship in a rhythmic red glow.

"Divert unessential power to shields!" Picard commanded.

"Aye, sir!" Geordi La Forge shouted from Engineering. He punched in commands on the sleek panel at his fingertips. The lights on the Enterprise dimmed ever so slightly as Geordi diverted whatever power he could salvage to the shields. Within seconds, however, quantum torpedoes landed heavily on the Enterprise 's shields, evaporating the extra power Geordi had armed the ship with.

A display panel on the back of the Bridge exploded in sparks sending the ensign working on it flying back, reeling in pain. Shields were now down to forty-five percent. Picard didn't even know how much the shields were powered by his chief engineer. The next shot had hit so quickly. Although it was better than nothing, it was clear who had the better advantage.

* * *

Data stared at the long Borg holding him captive with the precise aim of his photon rifle. One shot from the weapon would cause the already weakened android to suffer irreparable damage. And the enemy holding it could literally detect the slightest movement of its victim.

Footsteps in the distance caused both the Borg clone and Data to look up. Data looked to the side, where the sounds were coming from.

"Mmph... ugh!"

Another Borg emerged from the darkness, reporting to its master. In its arms it held a struggling being. Data craned his neck around the Borg in front of him to get a better view.

The Borg Queen smiled, beaming with pride at her pet Borg. Plunging her hand into an overhead compartment, she grabbed the weapon inside. Her hand emerged holding a photon pistol. Quickly, she grabbed the being from the Borg and stepped in front of the android.

When the Borg Queen stepped into the light, she was holding the pistol to Ensign Tim's head. Ensign Tim struggled, but the Queen's grasp was so tight, it was difficult to breathe. When his eyes caught sight of his android friend, he stopped struggling, his body paralyzed in shock.

"Data… what have they done to you?!"

His superhuman friend who possessed the strength of twenty men was reduced to a frail, broken victim. Barely any artificial skin was left on Data's right arm. Wires jutted out in all directions and from the way Data had his hand resting on his chest, it looked as if he could no longer move it. The rest of his body fared no better. Wounds riddled his chest, legs, and face. Ensign Tim could see the stains from where Data's internal fluid had long since leaked and evaporated. His thighs had such deep wounds, he wondered if his friend could walk.

"Give me the security codes to the Enterprise ," the Borg Queen demanded, pushing the barrel of the pistol into Ensign Tim's temple, "or I will kill this human."

Ensign Tim froze, swallowing hard. The Borg Queen grabbed even tighter on him, forcing the air out of his lungs. He stared with pleading eyes at Data.

"Don't give it to her," he thought, unable to speak because of the Queen's death grip.

Data stared at Ensign Tim, who was seconds away from being killed. The shaking of the Borg Cube was getting less violent now. Data guessed that it was because it had adapted. Any following shots from the Enterprise would not even phase the enemy ship.

"Sigma, Sun, Theta, Delta," the android's voice was barely above a whisper.

"NOO!!" Ensign Tim cried.

The Borg leader joyously released her grip of the Ensign and turned to her main computer.

"Data! Why did you do that?!" Ensign Tim asked, rushing to Data's side, "How could you give it away?!"

As Ensign Tim said this, he laid a gentle hand on the android's left hand. The two Borg, whom had not been given any further instructions by their master, stayed where they were, watching the verbal interaction between the Starfleet officers.

Making sure his back was toward the two Borg, Ensign Tim slipped a high-powered hand phaser from the front of his belt to Data's left hand.

"Your emotion chip must be getting to you," Tim said, making sure the conversation continued.

"I-I am sorry," Data replied, enclosing the phaser in his fist, "but you were in danger."

Ensign Tim mouthed the next words.

"On my count…one… two…"

"YOU BASTARD!! The code didn't work!" the Queen clone's voice erupted.

Everything happened in an instant. One second, Ensign Tim was silently mouthing to Data a countdown to a simultaneous attack. The next, the ensign was thrown to the wall next to the android. A flash of green that followed Tim's body confirmed Data's worst fears. One shot from the photon pistol was all it took to kill the ensign.

"TIM!!" Tears began to fall down the android's eyes. His friend of over ten years was dead. A decorated officer of Starfleet what had made a great difference even at the beginning of his career, had been reduced to a lifeless heap on the floor.

His eyes turned from the body of his friend to his murderer. The same being that now threatened the Enterprise and the only family he had come to know. The same being whose sister had killed countless Starfleet officers with the aid of her Borg.

The Borg queen clone advanced toward the android, grabbing the photon rifle from the Borg that looked to its master for direction. She was going to kill the android right then and there, no matter what it took. And she would make it suffer as long as it could.

But the android was now fueled by rage. Days on end he had been coerced, beaten, and tortured. And now, his friend was dead. All because of the cold, soulless, murderer before him.

"You gave me the wrong security code!" the Bog Queen shouted, powering up the rifle even as she brought it to the android's face.

But the android was too fast. In point zero two seconds, Data fired the high-powered phaser at the Queen's hand, knocking the weapon from her grip.

"That is correct!" Data shouted, defiance burning in his eyes, "You are stating a fact!!"

As the rifle landed, it released the bullet that had been powered up. The emerald photon penetrated the back wall, gouging a deep hole in its surface.

Data then fired three successive shots with his phaser, each with its own intended target. He killed the two Borg by firing a shot at the pipes at the tops of their head that connected them to the collective. The third, he hit the Queen squarely in the chest. However, she quickly recovered and dove for the photon rifle that lay on the floor between them.

Data scrambled for the rifle, clawing at the ground to move him forward. His hand grabbed the handle of the gun the instant the Borg Queen touched its barrel. Data's left hand found the trigger of the weapon, and he fired. The photon that blasted out of the barrel threw the Borg Queen back, slamming her against her own main computer.

As the Borg Queen slumped on the floor, Data took that time to get on his feet and holster the weapon properly. Amazingly, after a few seconds, the Borg Queen got back up to her feet. Her chest had a deep wound from the bullet; her internal wiring was now exposed. Another shot threw her back, but she still got right back up and advanced toward the android.

Finally, after the third shot, she had adapted. The photon bullet fizzled weakly on her invisible shield.

"What're you going to do now?" she asked sweetly, stepping toward Data. She relished how the android now trembled with each advancing step.

"This!" Data answered. As the Queen stepped again toward him, he stepped forward as well, tossed the useless rifle aside, and took out all his rage on the Queen. He kicked the Borg Queen with his right foot, making sure to connect with he exposed internal wiring.

"AUUGHH!!" Finally, it was the Borg Queen's turn to feel real pain. The Queen doubled over and Data seized the opportunity. He punched, kicked, and pounded the Queen with all his might. The Borg Queen had programmed herself to adapt to bullets from weapons, but nothing could prepare her for the unexpected physical combat of the android. Finally, when the Borg Queen lay on the floor, bruised and in pain, Data picked up the discarded rifle.

"I've adapted to that," the Queen boasted, still able to gloat in her agony.

"I know," Data replied. As the Queen tried to get up, Data fired several successive shots of his phaser at the Queen. In a split second, he fired a steady stream of bullets from the photon rifle at the same location on the Borg Queen. The Borg leader had adapted to the rifle and phaser, but not to the two combined.

"Do not hurt my friends." Data warned just before the shots dealt a final, deadly blow to the Borg Queen clone.

"AUUUGHHH!!!!"

* * *

Riker's face turned red as a Borg grabbed him by the neck and hoisted him in the air. His breathing instantly cut off, the First Officer's tried desperately to pry the Borg's hand from his neck, but it was like a mouse trying to escape from a lion's grip.

Worf was busy fending off the Borg that were surrounding him. The Borg in front of him swiped at his head, and he ducked to avoid the blow.

All of a sudden, the Borg that were surrounding both Worf and Riker stopped. In an instant, all seized in place, their limbs locking. Simultaneously, they fell stiff as a board to the floor. The Borg that had gripped Riker's neck released its hold, its fingers locking flat. Riker took several hungry lung-fulls of air before he was able to speak.

"What happened?" he asked, the color returning to his face.

"They're dead." Worf commented, kicking at the lifeless Borg on the floor next to him.

"But how?"

* * *

Data made sure the Queen was dead before he finally relaxed. His labored breathing echoed in the chamber. The Borg and their Queen was finally dead. The Borg had one great weakness. As long as they were connected to the collective, they remained the cold, calculating followers of the Queen. But without their leader, the collective was dead. And so were the Borg.

Data leaned against the nearest wall, suddenly feeling all of his wounds. The pain was so great, it brought the android to his knees. Finally, he collapsed on the floor, and this time, Data had a feeling that he would not regain consciousness.

_To be continued…_

_I greatly appreciate all reviews. Thank you so much to all reviewers! It is you who make __writing so rewarding! :)_


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

Riker and Worf carefully made their way around the corridors of the massive Borg Cube. With only dim emergency lighting and dead Borg all around the floor, it was slow progress, marred by the fact that Riker and Worf still weren't entirely sure the Borg were really dead.

The Enterprise stood in front of the Borg Cube, ready to beam the away team back home at a moment's notice. Now that the Borg Cube had stopped firing, repair crews had immediately begun work on the heavily damaged ship. The Enterprise still had shields raised, though; until the crew was 100 sure the Borg were dead and understood the cause of the Borg's death, they could not afford to let their guard down.

The silence on the Bridge was deafening. Some crew members braced themselves for the sound of resurrected mechanical drones while others listened intently for Ensign Tim's and Commander Data's voices.

* * *

Finally, Worf rounded the last corner, aiming his phaser before daring to look around. Riker had his ready to fire as he stood behind the security officer.

"Qun!" Worf gasped, the first to survey the scene.

Riker rushed beside him. He had never known the Klingon to shout in his native tongue when no other Klingons were around. The tone of Worf's voice, though, transcended all languages.

A battlefield lay before the two Starfleet officers. Three bodies lay motionless on the floor. The Borg Queen was shut down indefinitely. The arrogant smirk had finally disappeared from her red lips, replaced by a cold pale frown.

The human on the other side of the room lay in a heap on his side. Deep burns marked the side of his head and a phaser lay just two inches from his open hand. The android in the between them had, by far, suffered the worst injuries. He lay crumpled with his limbs stuck out in different directions. His legs were hanging to the rest of his body by just a few wires. His arms, face and chest were riddled with deep, open wounds. His face was transfixed in a glazed stare.

"Oh God," Riker gasped. But before he could take a step, the chief security officer stopped him with his arm.

Aiming his phaser directly at the Borg Queen's chest, Worf advanced toward the body.

"She's dead," Riker said, but the Klingon still stepped forward. Instinct told him that his commanding officer was correct; that the Borg queen had finally been put out of commission. However, his anger prevented him from heeding even his instincts.

When he was within arm's length of the Queen, he pulled a tricorder from his pocket.

No life signs.

But he quickly corrected himself and checked the tricorder for electronic signals. None. Only the emergency lighting registered. It was only then when Worf signaled to Riker that it was all clear.

Riker rushed to Data while Worf raced to Ensign Tim. A quick check of the ensign's breathing and pulse, however, revealed the truth. Another check of his tricorder showed no presence of life signs aside from his own or Commander Riker's. The Klingon hung his head and stared into the unmoving eyes of his former subordinate. He had taught the ensign from the time he set foot on the Enterprise as a Starfleet officer. And Worf was proud to say that Ensign Tim had been his student. From a nervous officer in training to an ensign well on his way to promotion, there was no doubt in Worf's mind that Starfleet had another captain on his way.

"You did well, Ensign Tim," he said softly to the young man's closed eyes.

"Data?"

Riker gently shook Data's shoulder. Data's left shoulder was one of the few places Data was not injured. However, there was no response from the android.

"Data, respond…" Riker said more harshly. But the android's eye still stared blankly ahead. Riker reached into his pocket and pulled out a commbadge. Carefully, he placed it on Data's chest, avoiding any wounds. He then pounded his own combadge, "Riker to Enterprise ! Four to beam directly to sickbay."

In an instant, Riker, Worf, Ensign Tim, and Data were dissolved away in a sparkle of blue. After weeks of isolation, torture, and agony, Data was finally on his way home. Riker just hoped it wasn't too late.

* * *

"Data…" the female voice echoed from a seemingly endless distance, "Data can you hear me?"

The voice tickled at the android's subconscious. It took him several moments to even understand that his own name was being called. However, all the android saw was black. The black was so dark, had he placed his palm at the tip of his nose, he would not be able to see it.

A few more seconds passed before the android was able to recognize the voice. The voice belonged to Dr. Beverly Crusher of the starship Enterprise , his home. Hearing her voice was like finally coming home after months of fighting in the trenches of war. Only then did he realize that he was lying on a bed, and a soft one at that. Or maybe it just felt so much softer because it vastly contrasted the cold hard titanium steel of the Borg Cube.

Data tried to respond, but the simple act of opening his eyes was as difficult and painful as trying to climb Mount Everest with two broken legs and arms. Summoning all the strength left inside him, Data tried to lift his eyelids, move his hand, nudge his finger an inch, anything to indicate to the doctor that he was still alive. However, he was too weak to move. It was an intensely frightening experience. To be so close to home, and yet so distant, it was as if fate were laughing in his face.

"He's freezing," a voice Data recognized as Commander Riker's said. He felt a light touch on his arm, but it was so tender and raw, the contact sent shock waves up and down his arm. Data suddenly realized how cold he was; he had never fully recovered from the freezing cold the Borg Queen had exposed him to.

A tricorder beeped near his ear, resounding in his head. Suddenly, the distant sound of automatic doors whooshing open filled the room.

"Geordi," the first officer greeted, though his voice was filled with nervousness.

"Where is he?" the chief engineer demanded, "Is Data okay?"

Data heard the sound of footsteps that suddenly stopped, followed by an audible gasp.

"Data!" Geordi cried out in desperation at his best friend.

But that was the last thing the android heard before slipping back into unconsciousness. Perhaps his dormant emergency programming had been revived. A last-ditch emergency programming resided in the android, allowing him to be conscious only a few final minutes. It allowed him to hear his friends.

As his life was literally being sucked away from him, he wished that he could see every one of his friends one last time. He wished he could tell them how much they meant to him. He wished… but the last desire went unheard even to his own thoughts, for the android's final electronic signal had made its way to its destination.

* * *

Nothing could have prepared Geordi to see Data in the condition he was in. His best friend and android, Geordi had grown accustomed to seeing his friend's indestructible form. He had seen Data take physical punishment no human would be able to stand. However, now, every surface of his friend's body was riddled with wounds. Exposed wiring jutted out everywhere and what should have been indicator lights pulsating with life were now dead. Not a single light offered a tiny glimmer of color. At this slight, Geordi's heart seemed to drop out under his stomach.

Dr. Crusher had just finished administering a hypospray into Data's neck. Usually the patient relaxed under the medication, but Data's body was already lifeless. There was no apparent change in Data's body movements (or lack thereof).

"I'm sorry," Riker apologized, jolting Geordi from his socked revere, "I should've warned you."

The medical practitioner side of Dr. Crusher took over, and she clicked a flat medical hatch in place over Data's body, which had been carefully placed on a biobed. She then hurriedly punched a few commands into the hatch to bring up a diagnostic of the android on the biobed and to increase the android's body temperature. Instantly, underneath the hatch, heat emitted, bathing Data's body in warmth. At the same time, the diagnostic readouts of Data's condition were projected on a display screen on the wall.

"Geordi," Dr. Crusher implored, "I need your help."

It was only then when Geordi realized he had been standing in one place with is mouth agape. Closing his mouth, he shook his head as if trying to physically shake the feeling of dread from him. It was an ancient saying that a surgeon should never operate on his own family member; he would be too emotionally involved. However, when it came to Data, it was a fact Geordi could not escape. He knew more than anyone on the Enterprise , and probably more than anyone in Starfleet, about Data's inner circuitry.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped toward his android friend and laid a gentle hand on the android's arm.

"It's okay, Data," Geordi said to Data's broken body, "You're gonna be just fine. Just hang in there."

* * *

Picard wanted to race down to Sickbay the minute he heard the desperation in his first officer's voice. However, the security of the ship was still at risk so long as the Borg Cube still hovered in space. Even though the Borg dwelling no longer possessed life, it still sent chills down Picard's spine like a burning afterimage.

Lieutenant Worf stood at the arc behind him on the Bridge. Picard could almost feel the Klingon's snarl as he stared at the Borg Cube.

"Would you like to do the honors, Mr. Worf?"

"Gladly, sir."

Worf pounded the commands at this fingertips, releasing the already loaded weapons. The Enterprise 's red laser streaked toward the Borg Cube and landed on the Cube's side, knifing a deep gouge into the surface. The laser cut across the middle, tearing into each sinister surface. The laser was soon followed by a series of thick quantum torpedoes that punched and blasted into the already damaged side, leaving a fiery plume in its wake.

The Borg Cube was pushed back with each hit, until it glowed orange and the entire Cube exploded from within. Flaming debris flew everywhere, but the Enterprise 's precisely aimed laser vaporized every last piece. When all was done, nothing was left. The only thing that could be seen in the Enterprise 's viewscreen was the vast space, finally at peace. The stars that speckled the darkness seemed to twinkle even brighter.

* * *

"Here Spot!" Riker called in his sweetest, yet forced voice, "Come on kitty."

During Data's absence, the first officer had taken it upon himself to feed his cat and even play with her from time to time. He had yet to get to the playing part. So far, the cat had stayed as far away from Riker as possible. Having nothing else to do but pace in his quarters and worry about the android, Riker decided that today he would finally get the cat to come near him enough to chase a cat teaser. However, at the moment, Spot was sitting under the bed, not willing to move in an inch.

Worf stood behind Riker. He had come along to see what was so difficult about playing with a harmless feline.

"Now I know why Data calls her 'Spot,'" Riker commented, "all she does is stay in one spot!"

Riker got on his hands and knees and looked under the bed.

"Here kitty, kitty, kitty," he coaxed.

Worf rolled his eyes.

"I don't understand why she doesn't come near me," Riker continued, his head still facing the cat under the bed.

"What would you do if some large alien came up to you and said, 'Here human, human, human,'" Worf replied, mocking Riker's coaxing perfectly.

Riker finally sat up and faced Worf, and incredulous expression on his face. Within moments, however, the first officer's mouth crinkled into a smile, and he laughed. His laughter filled Data's quarters until even the Klingon turned his usual stern façade into a smirk.

* * *

"Dammit!" Geordi shouted through gritted teeth, "COME ON!"

Dr. Crusher watched helplessly as the chief engineer tested the signal again and again. Geordi held an electronic stimulator in his right hand and he placed it up to the broken wires in Data's right thigh. Again and again, he pressed the tester, causing sapphire sparks to shoot from the nozzle. However, the signals never made their way down Data's the broken wires in Data's thighs.

Dr. Crusher and Geordi had spent the last several hours repairing Data's multiple wounds. Almost every part of Data was damaged. From main circuits to microfibers, it seemed as if every wire had been severed, cut, or torn. The doctor and chief engineer used the electronic stimulator to bring Data's damaged wires back to life. If a wire was salvageable, the signal from the stimulator would make its way down each end of the broken wire. If it was not, the wires would not respond.

The doctor and chief engineer had repeated this process on Data's injures, testing each wire. When a broken wire was unsalvageable, luckily, there were enough working wires to compensate for the loss. The same was not true, however, for Data's thighs. Even the few wires that were the only wires connecting Data's upper and lower legs did not work. The Borg Queen had focused most of her wrath on Data's thighs, slashing them again and again with the serrated knife.

Geordi knew none of this, of course. He did not know what the Borg Queen had done to cause so much damage; all he knew was that the damage she had inflicted upon his best friend was irreparable.

Dr. Crusher's heart sank as Geordi repeatedly pressed the electronic stimulator, as if sheer desire would force the signal down a broken wire.

"DAMMIT, COME ON!"

Dr. Crusher walked toward the chief engineer and laid a gentle hand on his tense shoulder.

"Geordi…"

"It's _got_ to work," Geordi said, staring down at Data's wounds, "there's got to be _some way_ to make it work."

But deep in Geordi's mind, he knew the truth.

* * *

"How is he?" Picard asked, looking at Data's unmoving form on the biobed. A mechanical device was connected to an access panel on the side of Data's head. The device emitted short signal streams at a steady rate. It hauntingly reminded the captain of respirators; devices that were used in the twenty-first century to help comatose patients breathe. Geordi was leaning on the side of the bed. His palms were on the edge of the biobed and his arms straight. His head was bowed over his friend's unresponsive body.

Dr. Crusher and Geordi had finally completed repairs to Data's wounds. Wiring that could be salvaged was grafted back together and new artificial skin covered old wounds. Scarring had been limited with the help of a low-powered laser.

Although Data looked much better than when he first arrived, Captain Jean-Luc Picard knew something was very wrong.

"He's fighting," Dr. Crusher explained, struggling to keep her own voice steady.

"Even after all the damage he's suffered, he's still fighting. His poistronic activity is slowly climbing, and with the help of the Electronic Pulse Emitter," the doctor gestured to the device connected to the android, "he has a good chance of regaining consciousness."

Warm, refreshing relief washed over the captain, but it was quickly replaced by trepidation. The chief engineer and doctor were far too silent.

"But…" Picard said, knowing it would be the first word of the doctor's next sentence.

A lump formed in the doctor's throat and she took a deep breath.

"We repaired as much as we could, but... but the damage… th-the damage in Data's legs are too extensive." Dr. Crusher was now fighting back tears.

"He's paralyzed, Jean-Luc."

_To be continued… _

_Thank you so very much to all reviewers! I greatly appreciate the feedback. It is the reviewers who make writing so rewarding! _


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

As Data slowly regained consciousness, it felt as if all positronic activity had been drained from him; and in fact it had. With the help of the Electronic Pulse Emitter and his own repaired emergency subroutines, he was slowly regaining the electronic signals he had lost. His positronic brain was finally receiving signals lost so long ago.

A faint beeping could be heard as more and more signals found their way to Data's positronic brain. Then, voices could be heard. It took several long moments before the android could discern that he was on the Enterprise and that he was indeed back home; the voices he heard were those of his friends and colleagues. As Data's memory engrams resumed function, he was thoroughly relieved to have regained at least some consciousness. Although a quick check into his emotion chip indicator told him that his emotion chip had been shut down, he still felt every fiber of relief from being back home.

"His positronic activity is back up at 80 percent," he heard Nurse Alyssa Ogawa announce.

"Crusher to Picard," Data heard the familiar chirp of an activated combadge.

"How is he?" Picard asked, not waiting a second.

"Data's positronic activity is at eighty-percent, captain!" the doctor replied, unable to keep the excitement from her voice.

"I'll be right there," came the response before Crusher could even continue. Although no one really knew when Data would regain full consciousness, a mixture of nervousness and instinct kept the captain from staying in his quarters.

* * *

In eight point seven minutes, Data felt strong enough to try and open his eyes. Although he knew that the last attempt had resulted in failure, this did not stop him from trying again. After twenty-seven tries, the android was finally able to open his eyes. 

"Data," Geordi said gently, moving so he was looking down at his best friend's face.

"He.. Hello, Geor.. Geordi," Data stammered, his long unused voice unsteady at first.

Sighs of joyous relief rang throughout Sickbay.

With some struggle, Data turned his head, and he saw that the entire senior staff was assembled in the room. After hearing the announcement of Data's progress from Dr. Crusher, each had found an excuse to make their way down to Sickbay. Although as senior staff, they didn't really need to report to their subordinates where they were going, none wanted to be seen as nervous as they truly were.

"It's great to have you back, Mr. Data," Picard greeted, stepping up so the android on the biobed, still encased in the medical hatch.

"Oh, Data," was all Counselor Troi could muster through her tears.

"You had us really worried there," Riker said through his relieved smile.

"I apologize for not being able to regain consciousness earlier, sir," Data responded, his voice now steady and clear. All smiled at Data's literal response to a rhetorical question. It was one of the countless things they missed about their android friend.

"It's okay," Riker chuckled, "It's just… we're so glad to have you back."

"It is good to be back, sir."

* * *

"How are you feeling?" Geordi asked instinctively as he and Dr. Crusher performed the final repairs to Data's broken body. The rest of the senior staff had filed out of Sickbay after a wordless consensus. 

Data seemed to ponder this for a moment.

"Since my emotion chip has been shut down, I do not 'feel' anything; but my internal diagnostics indicate that I should be fully operational in forty minutes, twenty-seven seconds."

The chief engineer winced, hearing his friend say 'fully operational'. Damage to Data's internal diagnostics was one of the countless injuries he had suffered. Had it been functioning, he would know the truth…

"Wait… did you say you emotion chip was shut down? When we found you, your emotion chip was not on."

"Then it must have been shut down when the Borg Queen clone died," Data stated simply.

"So, your emotion chip was _on_ when the Borg did this to you?!"

Data nodded.

Dr. Crusher's jaw dropped in horror.

Geordi winced visibly this time. Immediately, images flashed though his mind of what his best friend must have gone through. After several moments, he realized that he had been standing with his mouth agape in shock.

"I'm so sorry, Data," he whispered, staring down at his friend, the pain evident in his saddened eyes.

"You do not need to apologize," Data said, "this was not your fault."

A long silence ensued as Geordi returned to begin repairs on Data's internal diagnostic system. He would be able to shut it off and turn it back on once the repairs were made. However, he activated tools with deliberate slowness, wanting to delay what was coming as long as possible.

"Once my internal diagnostics are repaired," Data said breaking the silence, "I will be able to 'get up to speed' on what the events on the Enterprise during my absence."

Geordi smiled, his android friend was using more and more figures of speech; he really was catching on to being human.

"And I have a tennis file I programmed into the Holodeck that I believe you might enjoy. I have programmed the Holodeck to endow Sherlock Holmes and Watson with tennis skills that are equivalent to their mastery of mystery solving. Both should make formidable opponents in a doubles match."

Geordi responded with an audible shuddering sigh.

Data cocked his head. Geordi had always shown happiness at the thought of a Holodeck program.

"Data…" Geordi began hesitantly after taking a deep breath.

Dr. Crusher, standing behind him, suddenly looked as if she had aged ten years. The fatigued lines on her face were visible, and she seemed to be holding back tears.

"Data, th-there's something we n…ne- need to tell you…" the chief engineer's voice was already beginning to tremble.

Data looked from his best friend to the doctor. He found his friends' expressions intriguing. Although they had shown joy upon his recovery, he noticed that both were avoiding looking in his eyes. Experience had told him that when humans avoid eye contact, it is because they are either not being truthful, or they are afraid of saying something.

"Yes, Geordi…" Data gently prompted the chief engineer. But his friend's optical implants were filled with tears and his effort to hide them forced his voice into submission.

Dr. Crusher gently placed a hand on Data's arm; the doctor's eyes were moist as well, but she managed to face Data anyway.

"Data, when we found you, you were badly damaged… We repaired as much as we could. We reconnected wiring and stimulated your electronic signals with pulse emitters. But… the signals… the signals in your legs," Dr. Crusher was sobbing now, but she forged ahead, "the signals in your legs wouldn't respond. It looks like your legs are no longer functional. _I'm so sorry, Data_."

The android paused several moments, absorbing the new information.

"Then I will not be able to walk," he stated flatly.

The doctor nodded almost imperceptibly.

Data cocked his head ever so slightly but said nothing.

* * *

"One… two… three…" Dr. Crusher counted. On three, she and a burly ensign heaved the now sitting Data from the biobed and into the ioslinear chair; a vast improvement over a twenty first century wheelchair. The isolinear chair used isolinear chips to transfer signals from the control pad on the right armrest to its electro-sensor wheels. The wheels could detect objects on the ground and prevent from running over them. The chair itself could rise, adjusting for height as well; however, it did not go as high as Data once was able to stand. Geordi had worked tirelessly to design it. After several sleepless nights, he had created one, even improving upon the current electro-signal chair. 

"Thank you doctor, Ensign Wilson," the android addressed, "And thank you, Geordi, for building a chair suitable to my needs."

He immediately began testing the chair, determined to become accustomed to the foreign object he now had to depend on.

"Wait, Data," Geordi said as he watched Data wheel around in his chair.

"What about trying to send signals to your legs now?"

Even if he had not been able to simulate the wiring in Data's legs, maybe Data had a better chance. It was his body, after all.

Data nodded. Geordi held his breath, hope and fear swelling inside him all at once.

The android looked down at his legs and tried to send a signal down his right leg. But the signal stopped short of the middle of his thigh. He then tried to send a signal to his left leg, but that signal fell even shorter. Two thousand attempts in a matter of ten seconds yielded no successes.

"You are correct, Dr. Crusher," Data said, "I will not be able to walk." Without missing a beat, he resumed testing his chair.

Geordi swallowed hard several times, but he could not prevent the tears from streaming down his cheeks.

* * *

"Good evening, sir," Data addressed wheeling his way onto the Bridge. All officers turned towards the android. Some managed to smile; others couldn't help but stare at the chair he was trapped in. One officer glared at the android as he made his way down the ramp to the front of the Bridge. 

"Commander Data!" Jean-Luc Picard stood, surprised, "Ho-how are you feeling?"

"Although I will not regain full function, I am 'doing as well' as I can. My positronic activity is now at 100, not including calculations of my lower appendages."

With that, the android resumed his position at Ops as if nothing had ever happened. The ensign stationed as a substitute leapt out of the chair and pushed the control panel out so there was enough room for both the android and his chair. The controls, however, could not be placed in front of the android as they once were; they slanted at an awkward angle. The android did not even seem to notice this, however, as he resumed controls at Ops with the same speed he always had.

"Commander," First Officer Riker said, "you don't have to begin duty now. You can take some time to rest."

"I understand, sir. But I do not require rest. I am… as you would say… 'doing just fine.'"

Worf managed a toothy smile.

* * *

That night, while most of the officers on the Enterprise slept, Data, who did not require sleep, spent the time in his quarters practicing difficult maneuvers over and over again. From moving from his chair to a platform by shifting his weight on his hands and arms; to shifting his entire weight on one hand when reaching for something high on a shelf. It took a considerable longer amount of time to perform each maneuver. Many of the objects Data practiced on ended up bent, broken, torn, or dented because Data was gripping onto it so tightly. It was as if the android were learning basic functions all over again. He had to once again learn to control his strength as he carried his weight from one hand to the other. 

Data concluded that he would no longer be able to go on away missions; his slowed pace and bulky chair would only be in the way. He showed no signs of regret, however, as he progressed with his exercises.

"Spot," Data said gently to his orange tabby cat who leapt into his lap every chance she got, "my lap will not be here for you to sit on when I shift my weight." But every time she sat, he stroked her back and rubbed her ears. The feline purred contentedly. Humans aboard the Enterprise were not the only ones who missed their android friend.

* * *

"And that's what's been going on here around the Enterprise while you were gone," Geordi said as Data placed the padd back on the table. 

The senior staff of the Enterprise were seated around the glossy table on the Observation Deck the next day. Data had taken seven point eight seconds to review the logs of the events that had taken place on the Enterprise during his absence.

"The first look at the regenerative warp core must have been fascinating," Data commented on the Enterprise 's newly acquired invention.

"Oh yeah!" Geordi agreed, beaming at the memory, "I couldn't take my eyes off it."

After a brief pause, Riker continued.

"And now it's your turn, Data," he said, "do you remember what happened when you were on the Borg Cube?"

"My memory engrams have regained full function."

But the android did not continue.

"So what happened?" Picard prompted gently. If he didn't know better, he would've thought Data was hesitant… maybe even fearful of recalling the events.

In two point seven seconds, Data's entire ordeal aboard the Borg Cube assaulted Data's positronic brain. Every image, every sting, every cry of pain, every feeling of severed electronic signal, every ounce of fear, barraged Data's memory. He remembered every detail. It was times like these Data wished with all his might that he were human. Though humans often complained about their imperfect memory, there were some advantages to not remembering every single detail at any point in time. The old adage "time heals all wounds," never applied to Data, but right then, he wished it did.

"Are you ordering me to recall the events on the Borg Cube, sir?" the android asked timidly.

Picard, taken aback at the question, softened his expression after a moment of hesitation.

"I'm not ordering you to do anything. If you don't want to recall what happened, we can understand. But we would like to know what you've been through… For humans, when we experience something that is… difficult, it helps to talk about it."

"Is your emotion chip on?" Riker asked.

"No, sir."

Picard struggled to keep his face neutral. Why did he constantly have to be reminded that his android friend was not capable of feeling emotion? Or was he?

After a long silence, Data began to recall everything to his colleagues; from the moment he regained consciousness in the Borg Cube cell, to the final deadly blow he dealt to the Borg Queen clone. He did not spare any detail. Geordi couldn't help noticing that every time Data recollected when he was injured, the android's voice seemed slightly strained. He couldn't keep his own face from cringing as Data described the pain he endured each time the Borg Queen slashed him with the serrated knife.

After a while, Troi began involuntarily touching her arm of leg when Data recalled being slashed by the serrated knife. Her deep eyes saddened and at times she seemed to be holding back tears.

When Data finished, dead silence descended in the room.

"I wish to submit myself to disciplinary action," Data said after a moment of silence.

All eyes jerked upward in shock.

"I am responsible for Ensign Tim's death and therefore wish to submit myself to disciplinary action," Data explained.

"What?! How are _you_ responsible?" Geordi challenged.

"I did not calculate correctly how long it would take for the Borg Queen to enter the false security codes; otherwise I would have known that she would reach myself and Ensign Tim before we could attack her."

"You were badly injured," Dr. Crusher countered, "Geordi and I had to repair your internal chronometer. There's no way you would've known how long it'd take the Borg Queen to enter the codes."

"Which is precisely why I never should have allowed Ensign Tim to take the risk of planning a surprise attack on the Borg Queen," Data argued.

"What other choice did you have?" Geordi said, "The Borg Queen was right in front of you."

"Data, _Ensign Tim's death is not your fault_," Troi said firmly.

"And," Picard continued, "_You saved all of us and everyone on the __Enterprise_ . Every one of us here owes you our lives."

* * *

The senior officers filed out of the Observation Deck. Data was the last to exit, his chair whirring across the floor. 

"Oh, and Data," Dr. Crusher said, looking back at the android "I want you to report to Sickbay at 20:00 hours tomorrow.

"Is there something that still needs to be repaired?" Data asked, cocking his head, "My now functional internal diagnostics indicate that I am functioning at optimal levels, not counting my lower appendages."

"It's just a little physical therapy," the doctor explained.

"But there is a 0.0000001 chance that even one signal will travel down one of my legs. The time and effort spent is not worth the minimal chance that I will regain even the least bit of function in my legs."

"Are you sure about that?" Geordi asked.

Before Data could answer, a voice interrupted.

"Commander Data?" an officer who had been waiting outside the room addressed, "May I speak with you in private?"

It was Lieutenant Mitchell, the officer who had glared at Data on the Bridge. None of the senior officers knew this, of course; those on the Bridge were concentrating too much on Data's improved condition to notice Lieutenant Mitchell's scowl.

"Of course."

"I'll catch up with you later," Geordi said to Data before heading to his quarters. It was not unusual for subordinate officers to speak with senior officers. Some officers asked technical questions or questions about protocol in a certain situation; others asked how they could improve their performance in their duties.

Lieutenant Mitchell led Data to a small table in Ten Forward. Data noticed that officers and civilians alike were looking at him on an average of ten to twenty point five seconds longer than they normally did. A few groups stopped their conversation abruptly, silenced by the sight of the android in the isolinear chair.

When Data approached the table, he pushed the chair next to it to the side as far as his arm could reach. He then rolled his chair in place.

Lieutenant Mitchell, however, did not take a seat. He remained standing at the other side of the small table.

"Commander Data, may I ask what happened to Ensign Tim aboard the Borg Cube?" It was more of a demand than a question.

"Yes, you may," Data responded, thinking the lieutenant's voice was due to a subordinate's nervousness in asking a superior officer a question, "Please take a seat."

Lieutenant Mitchell finally hurriedly took a seat across from Data at the table.

Data proceeded to explain how Ensign Tim had died. He did not go into details on how he himself was injured. He figured it was superfluous information the lieutenant would be uninterested in. He paused before explaining when the Borg Queen had fired upon the ensign; he had done the same thing when explaining this on the Observation Deck. Was he expressing… sadness?

"So it's your fault," Mitchell said coldly as Data finished his recollection, "it's your fault my friend is dead."

"Captain Picard and the rest of the senior officers explained that Ensign Tim's death is not…"

"They're wrong! You're an android! You can calculate _precisely_ how fast the Borg Queen moves, how fast Ensign Tim moves, how fast you move. You KNEW there wouldn't be enough time to attack the Borg Queen before she entered the false security codes!"

"My internal chronometer was not functioning properly…"

"Let me tell you something!" the lieutenant leaned on the table so that his eyes were inches away from the android's eyes, "When Tim told me he was going to ask Captain Picard to be on the away team that would search for you, I begged him not to. I had a bad feeling about all this. Very few people have faced the Borg and come back alive and un-assimilated. But he didn't listen to me. And now look what's happened. He's dead. _You just sat there while Tim was killed._ _And you don't care, do you?_ You could care less whether Tim is dead or alive. You don't _feel _like us humans do."

Lieutenant Mitchell rose from this chair. The subordinate officer stood towering over the chair-bound android. He pointed at Data.

"The Borg Queen may have fired at Tim, but you were the one who gave her the time to deliver the shot! You should be stripped of your rank and decommissioned, you worthless, unfeeling android!"

* * *

"You ready for a game of poker?" Geordi asked, "Dr. Crusher, Commander Riker, Commander Worf, and I have been itching for a game. I think Commander Riker can't wait to beat you again." 

Data was still in Ten Forward hours later. Lieutenant Mitchell had long since stormed off.

"…Yes, Geordi," Data responded after some hesitation.

"Are you alright?" Geordi asked; a hesitation from Data long enough for him to notice was very unusual.

"I am functioning within normal parameters," Data said.

Geordi followed Data as he made his way to the exit. Though his friend was 'functioning within normal parameters,' he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

* * *

The next time Lieutenant Mitchell was on duty, he stepped hesitantly onto the Bridge. He was half expecting the captain to ask to speak with him in his Ready Room the minute he stepped off the turbolift. The senior officers were rather attached to the android and he would undoubtedly be punished for his insubordination. 

However, when he stepped on the Bridge, all the captain did was acknowledge him with a nod of his head. It didn't look like he knew anything about the incident. The lieutenant let his eyes wander to the front of the Bridge and he saw that Data was at his usual post at Ops.

"As soon as we dock," the lieutenant thought, "I'm demanding I be stationed somewhere else; where a machine's life is not held higher than a human's." Although the lieutenant respected Captain Picard, his loyalty toward waned when it came to his attachment to the android.

The massive starship slid into Starbase 54, where thick docking clamps grasped onto the ship. The entire ship rocked heavily as the clamps made contact with the Enterprise . Although internal repairs had been made to the Enterprise, massive dents, holes, and gashes still lay on the outer hull, making it vulnerable to any sort of contact. The ship had not escaped from the Borg unharmed.

As the ship rocked, Data held onto the small control panel before him; but the floor underneath him shifted heavily to the side and he was thrown out of his isolinear chair and onto the floor.

"Data!" Riker shot up as soon as the ship was stable.

"I am fine," the android insisted, "I do not need assistance." He and his chair were both laying on their left sides. Data brought his hands to the floor and pushed his upper body upright. He then walked his hands on the floor toward his lower body until he sat upright.

Picard had to fight not to grab his chair, which lay just beyond reach. An ensign to Data's right acted on her thoughts and walked toward Data's chair. All she had to do was bring it closer to him.

"Thank you for your willingness to help, Ensign Reed," Data said, catching her in the act, "but my duties require that I learn to do this on my own. This will not be the only time I am without my isolinear chair." Although Data had not had a chance to practice this move, he only saw this as the perfect opportunity to learn.

Data then proceeded to moved his hands to the right side of his body, and stretching his arms out, he crawled toward his chair, dragging his lifeless lower body with him. When he reached the chair, he pushed it upright easily and locked it into place. The android crawled toward the front of the chair, and gripping the right armrest with his left hand and placing his right hand on the seat of the chair, he hoisted himself up. He then twisted his body by walking his right hand on the seat of the chair. When his right hip rested on the chair, he gripped both armrests with each of his hands and brought his body facing the right direction before sliding back into his original position.

Picard struggled to keep from cringing, or even biting his lower lip. The android who wanted so much to be human, now looked just as weak and vulnerable as each of them.

"Captain Picard," the viewscreen switched to an image of Admiral Vincennes, jolting the captain from his thoughts, "we will begin repairs to your ship right away. Once the repairs are done, you are to report to Earth at Starfleet Headquarters for a court martial hearing."

"Mr. Worf," Picard whispered to the Klingon behind him, "patch the communication to my Ready Room."

"Belay that order, Mr. Worf!" the admiral said immediately. He then looked Picard squarely in the eyes.

"You directly violated orders from an admiral! You pushed _everyone_ on the entire ship into harm's way; your crew and all citizens aboard your ship deserve an explanation. They are welcome to view the hearing themselves. I don't see a need to hide anything from them now."

The subordinate crew on the Bridge stole glances at each other nervously. Picard was far from alone in violating Starfleet orders.

"You want an explanation, right now?" Picard asked, standing up out of his chair, "perhaps you didn't notice Commander Data, sitting right in front of you."

Admiral Vincennes looked toward where Picard gestured with his hand. He had been so focused on Picard, he didn't notice the android.

"Co… Commander Data!"

"Admiral," Data nodded respectfully, "he rolled his chair out from behind the control panel.

"You're… you're alive! And you're…" the admiral couldn't tear his eyes from the chair-bound android.

"I am in this isolinear chair, because I am unable to walk," Data explained as calmly as if he were describing the color of the Bridge.

"Commander Data sustained massive injuries in his encounter with the Borg," Picard explained, "he was tortured… the Borg Queen made a clone of herself who then tortured Data for the security codes to the Enterprise . The whole time, Commander Data's emotion chip was on. He felt every cut, every wound, every sting from the knife that the Queen clone used to injure him. But he refused to give her the codes. In the end, despite all his injuries, Data managed to kill the Borg Queen and all Borg."

Admiral Vincennes stared open mouthed at the crew. He was at a complete loss for words. At the back of the Bridge, Lieutenant Mitchell lowered his head. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind at once.

"Do you still wish to proceed with the court martial?" Data asked the admiral politely.

The admiral looked from Captain Picard to Commander Data and back again.

"N..no," he said softly.

He then directed his eyes toward the android, "In fact, I'm sorry I brought it up in the first place."

_To be continued…_

_I greatly appreciate all reviews. Thank you so much to all reviewers! It is you who make writing so rewarding! :) _


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

**Eternal Scars**

"Commander," Captain Picard addressed to the android after the communications link between the Enterprise and Admiral Vincennes ended, "may I see you in my Ready Room?"

"Yes, sir," Data nodded. He maneuvered his chair away from his station, and with some struggle, managed to make his way through the entrance of the captain's Ready Room through the narrow doorway.

When Data entered, Picard jumped forward to push away the chair that was positioned in front of his desk. He then seated himself at his chair and folded his hands on his sleek, blacktop desk.

"I thought you'd like to know that a funeral will be held for Ensign Tim at 0200 hours in three weeks. Some of his other friends stationed on other ships will beam aboard between now and then so they can attend the services."

Data immediately bowed his head and his facial features seemed to tense. If the captain didn't know any better, he would've thought the android had turned on his emotion chip. However, he knew that this was not true. His android comrade had not activated his emotion chip since his return to the Enterprise .

"With your permission, sir," Data said, meekly, "I would like to deliver a eulogy in his memory. I consider Ensign Tim to be one of my good friends."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

The captain then reached into his desk and pulled out a small circular disc.

"I also wanted to tell you," he continued, "that Ensign Tim wanted you to have this." He placed the disc gently on the desk in front of Data.

"When Dr. Crusher was reviewing Ensign Tim's records to prepare his…. death certificate…," Picard swallowed hard, it was never easy to lose a crew member, "she found an entry Ensign Tim had prepared."

He then quoted from the log, "'In the event of my death, please give Commander Data the program disc that can be found in the bottom drawer of my desk in my quarters.' "I believe it's a program to be activated in the Holodeck."

To Picard's surprise, Data did not pick up the disc. He stared at the tiny device for several long moments.

"Something wrong, Data?"

This seemed to shake the android out of his revere.

"No, sir," he finally gently took the tiny device in his hands, "Is that all, captain?"

Picard nodded. However, just as the android turned his chair around to leave, he spoke up.

"Data…. are you okay?"

"I am functioning within normal parameters, sir."

As the doors closed behind the android, isolating the captain in his ready room, he let out a heavy sigh. Normally, when Data was 'functioning within normal parameters' meant that the android was just fine. However, Picard had a feeling that his friend was anything but fine.

* * *

"Anything I can get for you?" Guinan, the El-Aurian bartender asked the android seated at the bar. 

With some struggle, Data had managed to settle himself into one of the bar stools by hoisting his body from his chair to the stool; however, he had to strengthen his internal equilibrium to keep from falling off the stool.

"Ginger tea, please," Data responded. He really didn't want anything to drink; he just wanted someplace to process all the thoughts that were running through his positronic brain. However, knowing that most came to Ten Forward to consume a beverage or drink, Data ordered one at random.

"So how are you doing, Data?" Guinan asked, setting the cup brimming with steaming tea in front of the android. She was dressed in one of her usual unique ensembles. This time, she wore a fuzzy maroon robe with a matching wide brimmed hat.

"I am functioning within normal parameters," the android replied exactly as he had whenever he was asked the question. However, the El-Aurian was not as easily deterred as some of her colleagues.

"And your legs?"

"They have not regained any function since I regained consciousness on the Enterprise . Despite Dr. Crusher's physical therapy sessions, no signal has progressed beyond 0.001 nanometers below one inch of the middle of my thigh."

The android sipped his tea, more out of imitating human behavior than need.

"Wouldn't that tea be better if you turned on your emotion chip?" Guinan asked.

Data cocked his head.

"I do not see a need to turn on my emotion chip."

"Why not? It'd allow you to enjoy your tea."

The android hesitated for several moments. His head bowed down slightly and he seemed to be staring distantly, not even knowing what he was looking at. Over seven million thoughts bombarded his positronic brain at once. At first, the android thought he was suffering from a signal overload, but a quick check of his flow regulator showed that neither it nor his signals had malfunctioned.

"Data?"

"It is 1904 hours," he responded almost too quickly, "I will need to prepare for my night-watch duty on the Bridge." He immediately pushed his hands on the stool he sat on to move to his isolinear chair.

"Ohh no," Guinan reached over the bar to grab the android's arm, "you're not leaving until you answer my question."

Data released his hold of the stool and faced the El-Aurian.

Guinan's voice then took on a more gentle, but firm tone.

"_Why are you so reluctant to turn on your emotion chip_?"

The android hesitated yet again. Data wondered if he was suffering from some unknown after-effect of his encounter with the Borg. He was taking an average of five point seven seconds longer to respond to questions; far too long for an android.

"You explain that my emotion chip would allow me to enjoy my tea," he said softly, "but you did not mention that my emotion chip will also force me to experience negative emotions such as fear, anger, pain…. sadness. I have experienced all those emotions in my most recent encounter with the Borg."

"Is that what you're afraid of?" Guinan asked gently, bringing her eyes up to meet the downcast eyes of the android, "You don't want remember what I felt like when you were on the Borg Cube?"

Data reluctantly nodded.

Guinan let out a deep breath. She had never seen the android so vulnerable. Ironically, although his emotion chip was not on, he showed every sign of a terrified human.

"Data," Guinan said softly, "part of being human… or El-Aurian, is learning to deal with emotions; good or bad."

"But humans 'deal with their emotions' because they do not have any other choice. Unlike myself, they cannot turn off their emotions. By deactivating my emotion chip, I do not experience negative emotion such as pain and fear."

"… and you avoid positive emotions too. Without your emotion chip, you can't feel joy, love, elation… what it's like to drink a calming cup of tea." Guinan added, gesturing to the tea in front of Data with her eyes.

"Is avoiding negative emotions worth never being able to feel love, joy, and happiness again?"

The android cocked his head inquisitively. Ever so carefully, he ventured into the depths of his positronic brain, sending signals to his memory files. Being careful not to activate his emotion chip, he slowly opened his memory files for .0001 seconds. In that time, the image of the Borg Queen wielding the serrated knife high over his wounded body seemed to burn a permanent image in his secondary files.

"Yes," he answered.

Bloop

Data's combadge sounded, announcing an incoming message.

"Commander Data," Captain Picard's voice arose through the link, "you were due at night-watch five minutes ago. Is something wrong?"

Guinan winced. Sometimes the captain had the worst timing.

She was about to speak to the captain, but Data beat her to it.

"No, sir," Data replied, "I am on my way."

Pushing his palms on the stool, Data lowered himself into his isolinear chair.

Guinan watched as he rolled out of Ten Forward and the tall doors of the bar closed behind him.

* * *

When Data returned to his quarters after his shift, he made his way the desk. The thick desk housed a computer that he had modified to keep up with his lightning-fast computations. 

"Mrow?" Spot immediately greeted him by jumping on the desk and rubbing her face against his chin.

"Hello, Spot," Data greeted; since Data was alone in his quarters, no one saw the corners of the android's mouth turn slightly upward as the cat purred contentedly. When Spot settled on Data's desk with his paws folded underneath, Data reached into his pocket. Carefully, he took out the device the captain had given him and placed it on his desk. The disc seemed to glimmer even in the dim light of his quarters.

Data stared at it for several moments. 90 of his positronic brain focused on it, far more than the average devotion to an item. Usually, Data processed thousands upon thousands of computations in his mind while carrying on a conversation with a fellow crew member. It was not that he wasn't interested in the conversation; his advanced brain allowed him to fully focus on several things at once. However, since had regained consciousness on the Enterprise , he found himself distracted. Most of his thoughts and computations focused on the events that had unfolded in the last several weeks. From the Borg Queen to Ensign Tim, it was as if he were experiencing an infinite feedback loop that he could not stop.

Suddenly, the emergency signal blared, bathing the Enterprise in a red pulsating glow.

"Red alert! All hands, report to Bridge! Prepare for emergency evacuation!"

Quickly, Data grasped the disc and placed it in his pocket before heading to the Bridge.

* * *

The Enterprise had not even completed repairs from its encounter with the Borg and already, it found itself in the middle of trouble once again. Still docked in Starbase 54, the viewscreen of the ship showed the interior of the ship repair station. Starfleet officers were scrambling across scaffoldings and down stairs. Another red signal and emergency horn resounded, joining in the chaos. 

"There's been a malfunction in the warp storage unit in this Starbase," Picard shouted over the cacophony, "a conduit exploded, damaging environmental controls and the temperature in the storage unit is rising. If it keeps rising, the warp cores will overheat and explode."

"There's enough warp cores in there to blow this entire Starbase to pieces," Riker gasped, "What happened to emergency controls?"

"It's not functioning, and we don't know why. Commander Riker, take an Away Team to the controls of the warp storage unit to see if you can stop the temperature from rising. I will take care of emergency evacuation procedures from the ship."

Riker tapped his combadge, "Mr. La Forge, meet us in Transporter room 4."

"Aye sir."

"Mr. Worf, Dat…" Riker's voice trailed off as he set eyes on the android confined to the isolinear chair. He had become so used to having the engineer, Klingon and android accompany him on away missions, calling all three of them in emergency situations had become automatic. Now that he looked at his comrade in his current state, deep down, he knew things had irreversibly changed. _Could he honestly go on pretending things were still the same? _

"Commander Data," Riker said louder, clearing his throat.

Data looked back at the first officer, not moving from his position.

"Commander Riker, I do not think that I will be able to help you. My compromised mobility will slow down the pace of the Away Team."

Riker swallowed hard. The truth was glaring him in the face, and Data had just stated it loud and clear.

"Commander, you can perform analysis and calculations faster than any man on this ship. You are the _perfect_ officer for this job."

It was only then when Data complied and followed Riker and Worf to the transporter room.

On the transporter pad, just before the three dissolved away in a sparkle of blue, Riker stole a glance at the android seated next to him. Deep inside, he hoped he would be proven right.

* * *

Just getting to the controls of the storage room proved to be difficult, immediately threatening to dash Riker of his hopes. 

Starbase 54, a cavernous bay, had several scaffoldings and stairs strung around its interior. Officers easily climbed stairs to go from one floor to another. The same was not true, however, for an android in an isolinear chair. The sharp turns and narrow scaffolding forced Data to negotiate the walkways with careful precision to prevent from running into the sides. Although there were turbolifts, they had been sealed off due to the emergency. They had not even reached the first set of stairs yet, but Data knew that once they did, the isolinear chair he was confined to would take several moments to hover over just one stair.

"You must proceed without me," Data shouted to Worf, Riker, and Geordi over the blaring of the emergency signal. He checked the padd in his palm, which was remotely assessing the interior of the storage unit.

"Temperature in the storage unit has reached 21.1 degrees Celsius and is rising at a rate of ten degrees every five minutes. Once the temperature reaches 37.8 degrees Celsius, the warp cores will explode."

"That gives us about 15 minutes," Riker said.

Data nodded, "You must stop the temperature increase in that time."

Riker returned Data's glance with an incredulous stare. How the hell were they…

But he didn't have time to finish that thought. Worf instantly grabbed the android and hoisted him out of his isolinear chair. The Klingon was tired of the officers wasting time.

"Let's go!" he shouted, striding down the run of the scaffolding, the android in his arms.

* * *

Data's fingers were a blur as they danced over the console. The temperature had risen to 30 degrees Celsius. Worf had placed him in a rolling chair in front of the main controls and he immediately went to work, assessing the situation. Unfortunately, the controls were in the neighboring room of the warp cores and there was nothing to protect the officers. The forcefields that usually kept officers safe were not in place, leaving a large opening between the adjacent rooms. 

"What about portable coolants?" Riker suggested, "We could use them to cool down the warp cores."

"No," Geordi said, not taking his eyes of the console in front of him, "the sudden drop in temperature might make them unstable. Warp cores must be kept between 10 and 15 degrees Celsius or they'll become unstable. If we can just stop the temperature from rising and slowly cool it down in here, we'd be fine."

"How do we ever fly with these things without blowing ourselves up?" Riker wondered out loud.

"When on board a starship, forcefields are erected around the warp core to regulate temperature and secure any instability." Data explained, answering the rhetorical question, "when in storage, the warp cores are kept behind forcefields and in a temperature controlled environment."

"So much for that."

Geordi tried in vain to activate emergency temperature controls, but the controls beeped in reply without responding.

After bringing up diagnostics, Data analyzed every detail in ten point two seconds.

"The cooling flow regulator in environmental controls has been damaged by the initial explosion," he explained, quickly understanding the problem "Emergency units were damaged when a plasma conduit from the environmental controls burst. Plasma then melted emergency control resulting in the failure of temperature control and forcefields."

"We have ten minutes before the temperature reaches 37.8 degrees, Data," wariness finding its way in Geordi's voice.

In five point seven seconds, Data redirected wiring to make an impromptu pathway that allowed signals from other parts of the Starbase to flow into the storage control unit. Although the pathway was not perfect, (several wires had to connect with flow regulators not designed with the wiring), Data had little other choice.

However, when he tried to re-route emergency forcefields from the plasma conduit storage room to the room they were in, the signal that reached the room was not strong enough to bring up the forcefields. The strength of the signal steadily weakened as it traveled to the warp core storage unit.

"Five minutes, before explosion!" Geordi shouted as he observed what Data was doing on his own console, "Computer! Count down to when this room reaches 37.8 degrees."

The computer chirped in acknowledgement.

"Great," Geordi thought dismally, "the only thing that's working around here is the countdown to disaster."

"You must all leave this room," Data said, his voice his usual calm, "I do not know whether I will be able to activate the forcefield before this room reaches 37.8 degrees."

"We're not leaving," Riker said adamantly.

"Sir, if you do not leave, we will all be killed in the explosion."

Before Riker could protest, Data pounded his combadge.

"Commander Data to Station 4," the android addressed the Starfleet station on the planet below.

An unfamiliar officer answered the call.

"Sir, this is Lieutenant Chang of Station 4."

"Three to beam down to Station 4, immediately."

Gerodi instantly jerked his head up from the panel.

"No! TWO TO BEAM UP! Commander Riker and Lieutenant Worf!"

Instantly, Riker and Worf disappeared, molecule by molecule away from the room.

Data looked at Geordi.

"There's no time to discuss this, Data," Geordi said, not taking his eyes off the controls in front of him, "we have two minutes left. I'm diverting power from the east wing of the Starbase to the signal you just made."

Data quickly tapped out the next commands, following the flow of the increased power. However, even that was not enough. He would have to divert power from the rest of the Starbase. He quickly scanned the panel in front of him, but the controls he was looking for was not there.

_Two minutes to temperature meeting 37.8 degrees._

Data pushed off the console in front of him and the chair rolled him across the room to the other control panel. He just had to get a few more units of power from the west wing. It would be a series of commands that only an android could perform in the little time they had.

However, the controls were on an upper panel, far above the android's reach.

_One minute to temperature meeting 37.8 degrees._

Geordi was not even looking at Data. He was diverting as much power from the east wing as he could from his side of the controls. The ticking clock and rising temperature in the room kept him well distracted.

_Forty-five seconds. _

"Data, where's the power from the west wing!" Geordi glanced up from his controls and did a double-take. His android friend had thrust his body on a lower console, all on the weight of his left hand. Data's right hand was a streak gold as he diverted all non-essential power from the west end of the Starbase to the control room.

_Thirty-seconds_.

Data watched the diagnostic console as the power from his makeshift pathway slowly made its way to the room he and Geordi were in.

_Twenty-seconds_.

Data put his right hand on the console and twisted around to see behind him. He was still leaning on the console, holding his weight on both hands. The chair he had been sitting on had been pushed away when he leaned on the console. On the floor of the open frame that connected the storage room and the control room, a forcefield started to rise.

Normally, forcefields instantly buzzed into place, instantly blocking off both people and hazardous materials, but the makeshift pathway greatly slowed the pace of the activation of the forcefield.

_Ten-seconds_.

Geordi watched as the forcefield crawled at a painfully slow pace to the ceiling.

_Five… _

The forcefield had more than one foot before it reached the ceiling and completely sealed off the storage room.

_Four…_

The distance to the ceiling had been cut by half.

_Three..._

Gerodi knew that if even a one inch gap had been left when the warp cores exploded, it might break the incomplete forcefield and their entire efforts would end in disaster.

_Two…_

The forcefield seemed to crawl the last few inches before it reached its goal and sealed shut.

_One…_

The twenty warp cores inside the storage room instantly exploded, detonating one after the other. The fiery plumes engulfed the entire storage room and hit the newly erected forcefield with such force, it buzzed and crackled for several moments. The blue sparkle of the forcefield lit brightly, protecting the android and chief engineer from harm.

The floor shook violently from the explosions, sending Data and Geordi to the floor.

"Geordi," Picard's voice came over their combadges, "Is everything alright?"

Geordi took several nervous breaths before he was able to find his voice.

"Yes captain… we made it just in time."

Taking several more breaths, Gerodi surveyed the room. Everything was intact, not a console out of place. Finally, he heaved a sigh of relief and sat up on the floor. That was too close. _Way too close_.

"Data, are you alright?" Geordi asked, looking at his android friend who lay on his side on the floor.

"… yes Geordi, I am fine."

Again, he seemed distracted. But before Geordi could inquire further something caught his eye.

"What's that?" he pointed to a shiny disc on the floor next to Data's head.

"It is a Holodeck program given to me by Ensign Tim. He specified for me to have it in the event of his death."

"I'm so sorry, Data," Gerodi said, reminded of the ensign's death and the impact it must have had on his friend. He rose and walked to his friend, helping him sit upright, "I'll make sure you have a Holodeck to yourself for as long as you want."

"Thank you, Geordi. But I do not think that that is necessary."

When Geordi met Data's face with a confused stare, Data continued.

"Since I am responsible for Ensign Tim's death, I do not think I am deserving of such a gift."

* * *

"Data, would you like to join me in a game of chess in Ten Forward tonight at say, 0800 hours?" Gerodi asked just before he left the Observation Deck. He desperately wanted to talk to Data in private. However, he hadn't had a moment alone, or in peace for that matter, in hours. 

The two had just finished briefing the captain about the events on the Starbase. All senior officers had already left, but not without stealing a last concerning glance at the android in the isolinear chair.

Data nodded.

"That would be acceptable."

Gerodi then exited out of the Observation Deck to Engineering for the rest of his shift.

The captain rose from his chair at the head of the long table, but Data spoke up.

"Sir, may I make a personal request."

"Of course, Data," the captain sat back down and turned to face the android.

Data immediately began to speak, almost as if he waited too long, fear would force his voice back into submission.

A part of Data wished he could share what he was about to do with Geordi, but he knew his best friend would protest. He had been considering this option for a long time, but recent events had made the answer clear. The android waited several seconds before speaking, savoring the last few moments before he would change things forever.

"Sir, I wish to resign from Starfleet."

_To be continued…_

_I greatly appreciate all reviews. Thank you so much to all reviewers! It is you who make writing so rewarding:) _


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

Note: I apologize for not being able to update sooner. A busy schedule prevents me from updating as often as I'd like.

**Eternal Scars**

"W-What?" Picard managed to stammer.

"…I wish to resign from Starfleet, sir," Data reiterated after some hesitation. This wasn't getting any easier, "After today's events in the war core storage room, it is clear that I have become a liability to this ship."

"What do you mean? You _saved_ several lives today. Had you and La Forge not created that forcefield, the warp cores would have detonated, killing everyone left in the Starbase."

"While that is true, the forcefield sealed 1.07 seconds before the warp cores exploded. Had I been two seconds slower, everyone left in the Starbase _would have_ been killed. My current state slowed the away team's progress by five minutes, fourteen seconds. Lieutenant Worf had to carry me to the control room to save time. I can no longer continue to ignore the fact that my current condition greatly compromises the safety of this ship. If I do so, lives will eventually be lost."

Data hung his head low, staring at the blacktop table of the Observation Deck.

Picard leaned back in his chair and sighed heavily. He had been trying to go on as if nothing had ever happened; as if his android friend had not been captured by the Borg… as if his android friend could still walk. However, Data was forcing him to face the truth: that things had irreversibly changed.

"It is because of this… and another reason that I must resign." Data said finally.

The captain waited patiently for the android to continue, but he didn't. He continued to stare at the table as if afraid to meet Picard's eyes.

"'Another reason?'" Picard asked, gently prompting his friend.

"I have found that since my return to the Enterprise , I have been preoccupied. 90 to 95 of my thoughts have been of my experience on the Borg Cube and of Ensign Tim's death. It is as if I were experiencing an infinite feedback loop."

The two sat in silence for the next several moments. Data began to wonder if he had a severe malfunction that his internal diagnostics could not detect. He was becoming slower and slower in his calculations and his responses were equally sluggish.

"Sir…" Data finally looked up to meet the captain meekly in the eyes, "May I ask you a personal question?"

Picard let out a heavy sigh, but nodded almost imperceptibly.

"What was your experience with the Borg like?"

Ever so slightly, the captain of the Enterprise hung his head and breathed in a shuddering breath. After being rescued from the Borg by his crew, he had experienced his own "feedback loop." It seemed as if the images of his own experience with the Borg would never stop. And in a way, they never did.

"You do not have to answer if you are uncomfortable with sharing your experience," Data said, as if reading Picard's thoughts.

"No," Picard responded after some hesitation, "It's fine."

He never shared his experience with the Borg with anyone but Dr. Crusher; and even then, he didn't go into a lot of detail.

"No one will ever understand what I've been through," he thought.

But now, of all ironies, an "emotionless" android might.

"You ask what it was like, being captured by the Borg. Hell. Pure hell. I was captured by the Borg so quickly, at first I couldn't think. I felt myself dematerializing off the Enterprise and rematerializing on the Borg Cube in seconds. In an instant, I was surrounded by Borg."

The captain now stared distantly, as if reliving the ordeal all over again, but Data hung on to every word.

"Even then… even when I found myself surrounded by Borg, I thought I had a chance. I thought, as long as I refuse, with every fiber of my being, to be assimilated, I wouldn't be."

The captain shook his head in regret, "I was so naïve."

"I don't remember how many Borg surrounded me, all I know is, there were enough to force me onto one of their tables. One held its implant needles within an inch of my neck. The others forced me to the table with their brute strength. The Borg at my right grabbed my right arm so tight, he crushed it, breaking it instantly. When I was reeling from the pain, they forced me onto the table.

"That's when I knew I was in trouble. I knew they would have restraints, so I fought. I kicked two off of me, but five more took their place. When the Borg at my right arm saw that I was resisting, it pushed down on my broken arm. I couldn't help but scream; I was in so much pain. The Borg then activated the restraints and I was strapped to the table… I struggled, but it was no use. There was _no way_ I'd break my way out of those restraints.

"Then the Borg Queen introduced herself. Said she was the leader of the Borg Collective; that resistance was futile and that I would give myself willingly to the Borg."

"_Never_," I told her, "_I would never submit myself to the Borg_."

"It was then when one of the Borg inserted its implant needles into my neck. During the last seconds of consciousness, I focused on one thing: That I would not become another Borg drone. Too many lives had been lost in the hands of the Borg. They weren't going to get me.

"… But they did. When I regained consciousness, my body and half my face was covered with implants. It was as if the Borg had taken my consciousness and placed it in one of their mechanical bodies. My body was no longer my own. I saw myself lift my right arm to accept a Borg arm that a drone was about to give me. The bone inside my arm had been repaired with mechanical wiring. I could _feel_ it inside me. As I saw myself lift my arm, I tried to resist. I tried to force my arm back down. With all my strength, I tried to prevent it from accepting the Borg arm, but I couldn't. My thoughts were the only thing I had control of at that point.

"And then…" the captain bit his lower lip and shuddered, "a Borg drone approached me with a laser. The laser cut into an opening in the Borg implant on my face and I could feel my very thoughts being torn away from me. I tried desperately to hold onto those thoughts. To remember everything I could; the Enterprise , my crew... all the missions we had undertaken. And then, in an instant, all those thoughts were gone."

By now, Picard was close to tears.

"From then on, my only thoughts were of assimilating other 'weaker' species. My mind was connected to the Collective. I no longer possessed, nor was I capable of, independent thought.

"When I saw the Enterprise as a Borg drone, I had no feeling. I had no memory or emotional attachment to the ship in which I had been the captain of for the past three years. I had no feeling towards Commander Riker, you, Dr. Crusher, or anyone else on the Enterprise . Everything that defined me as a person… as a human being was wiped clean.

Picard paused to take a deep, shuddering breath.

"I watched as the Borg Cube fired on this ship, hell, I even commanded it, _and I didn't care_," the captain continued, not hiding the bitterness in his voice, "I had become a heartless, cold, calculating killer… a Borg."

At this, the captain visibly shuddered. Even recalling it now, years later, it was hard. To think that he had become Starfleet's most notorious enemy and fired upon his own ship without any care was almost too much to bear.

"It wasn't until you interfaced with me through the communications link did I start to have any feeling. It wasn't until then that I started to remember who I was…. And what I had become."

Data processed every word, listening with nearly 100 of his positronic brain. His experience with the Borg had been very different, and yet, he saw the same things in Picard that he was now experiencing. Regret, pain, fear. These were the emotions shared by both the captain and the android in their encounter with the Borg. And in a way, the android was still experiencing these emotions; without his emotion chip.

A long silence descended in Ten Forward as Picard took a deep breath and tried to maintain his composure. He now finally had someone who would understand what he had been through, and yet, he wouldn't wish that on anyone. It was a bittersweet moment.

"Sir," Data said almost hesitantly, "How did you return to normal function after your encounter with the Borg?"

Picard let out a heavy sigh.

"It took a long time. And in a way, you never really recover, but things do get better," he added quickly after seeing Data's head bow down.

"I don't want to lie to you and say that things return to normal right away, but in time, it does. Things do get better. For a long time, I blamed myself for being captured by the Borg. I blamed myself for firing on my own ship even though every trace of my soul had been sucked away by the Collective. _But in situations like these, you must not blame yourself_.

"The Borg captured me so quickly, I didn't even have time to breathe. Even when I was on the Borg Cube, there was no chance of escape. Surrounded by Borg, I had no chance. Once I was assimilated, I was no longer human. It was a soulless being that fired on the Enterprise , not me… It took me a long time to realize that.

"And you, Data, must not blame yourself for Ensign Tim's death."

Data looked up at the captain hesitantly.

"You could never have foreseen the Borg capturing you, nor could you have predicted that Ensign Tim would be captured by the Borg as well. Whether your internal chronometer was damaged or not, _you did not case Ensign Tim's death_. I think in times like these," the captain looked up at Data and met him in the eyes, "it's very human to blame yourself. You blame yourself, because you would have liked to have been in control of that situation. We all like to think that we are in full control of our destinies. But in reality, we're not. You say to yourself 'If only I had reacted just a little bit faster.' 'If only I resisted a moment longer,' things would be different. But you _can't_ allow yourself to think like this. You'll drive yourself crazy. Now matter how hard you wish things were different, you can't change what's happened. Wishing things were different doesn't change the past; it only serves to damage the present and threaten to destroy your future. You become so consumed with wishing you have control of things you don't have control of, you destroy yourself."

Data nodded slowly.

After a long hesitation, Picard continued.

"Data, I've noticed that you haven't turned on your emotion chip since you regained consciousness on the Enterprise ."

Data jerked his head up. No one had bluntly stated that fact to his face before. But it was a fact…

"I know it's difficult facing emotions; _especially _when one has been through an ordeal like you've been through. But you have to learn to deal with these emotions. If you don't the Borg Queen will have hurt you twice. The first, when she captured you and the second, she is preventing you from cherishing the most precious gift your father gave you: your emotion chip. Don't let the Borg Queen hurt you again."

Data's positronic brain streamlined with activity, processing all the new information, absorbing every word the captain spoke. The captain studied the android's face carefully. It almost seemed as if he were holding back tears.

"Data, I urge you to really think about your decision. _Do you really want to resign_? You'll be walking away from something you have known all your life. Something you've worked for and dedicated your life to will be gone. _Do you really want that_?"

"It is not a matter of what I want," Data replied without hesitation, "It is a matter of considering what is best for the Enterprise and its crew."

"Data, you are an invaluable officer whom I trust my life with. I cannot imagine running this ship without you. At least reconsider this. Don't give me an answer right now, I mean after you've really thought about this… with your emotion ship on."

"'With my emotion chip on,' sir?"

"Yes. Because if you don't consider this decision with your emotion chip on, I'm afraid you'll regret it for the rest of your life."

Data slowly nodded his head, considering the captain's words very carefully.

"Yes, sir."

After a long hesitation, the android backed away from the table. Before he turned his isolinear chair around, he met the captain's eyes.

"Thank you, sir."

* * *

Data fiddled with the circular disc in his hands, studying its surface, its transparency, its parameters… its source. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he placed the disc on the floor, pressed a small button on its surface, and rolled his chair back.

"You ready?" the El-Aurein asked softly.

Data nodded.

Data sat in the middle of Holodeck Three while Guinan stood at entrance near the controls. Data didn't know exactly why he had asked her to accompany him to the Holodeck. Perhaps it was because she had had her own encounter with the Borg; an encounter so traumatizing, it resulted in a pure hatred toward them. It was because of the Borg that Guinan and her people were separated from one another, spread throughout the galaxy and left to find their own place in the vast universe. It was because of the Borg that both Guinan and Data had lost so many friends.

Guinan typed a series of controls that instructed the Holodeck to download the contents of the circular disc. Data continued to sit in the middle of the Holodeck, surrounded by the black walls covered with yellow gridlines.

Slowly, ever so carefully, he turned on his emotion chip for the first time since his terrifying encounter with the Borg. In 0.02 seconds, a barrage of terror, agony, frustration, anger, and pain assaulted his positronic brain. The android squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose. No matter how much he felt he was prepared for the emotions, they always threatened to tear down his resolve once he faced them. But he fought hard, and did not turn off his emotion chip.

Images began to surface in his mind. The Borg Queen was smiling hungrily at him as a predator smiles down at its prey. Her narrowed eyes and devilish grin were hauntingly familiar. Data involuntarily touched his arm as an image of the serrated knife cut through his memory. He could recall with great accuracy what it felt like to have someone stab you and drive a knife deep into your flesh. Data's simulated breathing shortened as he relived sneaking around Borg Cube for the control room after escaping from his cell.

It took several moments to control his own simulated breathing and force his voice to function. Finally, he looked up.

"Computer…"

The Holodeck chirped in reply.

"Begin program."

The Holodeck projected the newly downloaded program into the room. In an instant, the black room with yellow gridlines burst into shades of blue and gray. Broken ship panels and severed support columns surrounded Data. An image of the young Ensign Tim appeared in front of the android.

"Remember this?" Ensign Tim asked.

Now Data understood why his friends enjoyed Holodeck programs so much; they were so _real_. It was almost as if nothing had ever happened and he and Ensign Tim were sharing a Holodeck adventure together again.

The holographic image of Ensign Tim smiled as he spread his arms out, gesturing beside him.

"Of course you do. This is where we met. This is where you rescued me from the broken ship I was on."

Ensign Tim looked back at the broken column behind him, shaking his head.

"I was so scared. I thought I was gonna die. For a long time, I couldn't stop thinking about this scene. I kept thinking over and over in my mind that I was the one who caused this; that because of me, the only home I had ever come to know was destroyed, and my parents were dead. I kept thinking it was my fault… but you helped me see the truth: that I wasn't at fault, and that I deserved a much better life than what I was allowing myself to have. A life of friendship, adventure, and memories."

Data bit his lower lip and his eyes lowered with sorrow.

"If you're watching this, it means I've died. I hope that I have made you proud."

Ensign Tim was now looking directly at Data's eyes. It was then when the Holodeck program ceased to be a program and became a friend sharing his last words with a friend he had grown up with for years.

"Data, you've been like a father to me. You encouraged me when I told you I was going to apply for Starfleet Academy . You gave me the space I needed when I was thinking about my parents. You helped me gain back the spirit I had lost."

Despite Data's best efforts, two tears fell down his cheeks.

Ensign Tim laughed, his joy echoing throughout the room.

"Remember the time when I came back from school crying because Vince Richards said I was a 'short ugly freak with no parents'? The next day, when you dropped me off at school, Emily asked if you could make the jungle gym a different shape and you took the entire titanium alloy steel structure and twisted it until it looked like a giraffe? Vince never teased me again after that."

The android felt himself smiling. School administrators weren't too happy when they found out the jungle gym had been turned into a jungle giraffe, but the kids loved it.

Ensign Tim then smiled ruefully.

"My friends ask me how an 'emotionless' android could help me deal with my own emotions and all that I had been through… and I don't really know the answer. I don't know how you helped me through the most horrific experience of my life… but you did. Somehow, you helped me understand and deal with my own emotions better than any human ever would have.

"You've said before that once crewmates pass on, you don't think you'll ever see them again. But I don't think that's true. I think we'll see each other again… someday.

"Until then, I want to thank you. Thank you for all the adventures and memories we've shared. Thank you, Data, for being my friend… I'll see you later."

With that, the program ended. The Holographic image of Tim faded and disappeared and the background of the damaged ship returned to the black room covered with yellow gridlines.

For a long time, Data sat motionless in his isolinear chair. His eyes downcast and his gaze was distant. Finally, the tears came streaming down. Data fought hard to keep them from breaking his resolve, but it was a losing battle. Finally, the sobs took over. Tears burned wavy paths down the android's cheeks and his shoulders shook with every sob.

Guinan, who had been standing so silently to the side, walked over to Data. Without a word, she knelt in front of the android and wrapped her arms around the android, enveloping him in her warm embrace.

Soon, Data made no effort to hold back the tears. He allowed himself to grieve over his friend's death, to sob at the recollection of his torturous experience with the Borg, to shed tears over his having to end his Starfleet career, to cry over his not being able to walk ever again.

After several long moments, the tears began to subside. Slowly, Data released the embrace he shared with Guinan. Guinan leaned back so she was at arm's length with the android.

"You okay?" Guinan asked gently.

Data nodded. His hands quivered as he wiped the leftover tears that were on his cheeks

Suddenly, Data jerked his head up and he looked at his right leg.

"What's wrong?" Guinan instantly noticed the sudden change in the android's behavior.

Data stared open mouthed at his leg.

"A signal has just successfully traveled to my foot."

_To be continued…_

_I greatly appreciate all reviews. Thank you so much to all reviewers! It is you who make writing so rewarding:) _


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Star Trek the Next Generation is property of Paramount Pictures and all respective cast, crew, and employees. I am not making a profit off this. This is simply for fanfiction enjoyment.

Summary: The Borg have returned and have captured Data. Using very different tactics from their last encounter with the android, they will stop at nothing to gain control of the Enterprise … and Data may not survive the ordeal.

Note: I'm sorry for not being able to update sooner. Things have gotten really busy, preventing me from updating as often as I'd like.

**Eternal Scars**

Dr. Crusher scanned the tricorder down the length of the andorid's leg. She gripped the device tightly as if the strength of her grasp would force the desired reading.

Data sat on the side of a biobed while Geordi and Guinan stood waiting with baited breath on the side. Data was also interested in reading the tricorder. He followed its path until he almost fell off the side of the biobed.

The medical tricorder was an advanced device that detected even the most minute of signals. The tricorder beeped at a steady beat, then rapidly increased to a rapid succession of tones.

A wide grin spread across her face.

"You're absolutely right, Data. A signal has successfully traveled down the length of your leg."

Gerodi and Guinan couldn't contain their excitement. Guinan jumped up and down while Geordi cheered out loud.

"It'll take some work," Dr. Crusher said after Guinan and Geordi calmed down (somewhat), "but with some physical therapy, you should regain the use of your legs."

"How did this happen?" Guinan asked with excited curiosity, referring to the successful signal.

"I think it has to do with Data's emotion chip," Geordi said, still smiling. He then turned to his android friend, "Dealing with new and unfamiliar emotions has presented a completely different challenge for yourself and your body that you've never had to deal with before. I think this forced your signals to find new pathways throughout your body in order to cope… physically and emotionally. Some of these new pathways must have included your legs."

Data looked at his currently limp legs.

"The signal that has traveled down my leg has increased my chances of walking by five percent. Increasing the possibility to 5.000001"

Geordi's heart stopped cold. He had thought that the successful signal had virtually guaranteed Data's walking. A quick exchange of glances from the other two showed that it was clear that they were thinking the same.

"Is that true?" Guinan mouthed to Dr. Crusher.

The doctor met Guinan's eyes with a defeated gaze. Her tricorder did not calculate the possibility of walking; only Data could perform such precise calculations in a matter of seconds. And how could he be wrong?

Geordi bowed his head and bit his lip. _Five percent_… Data had been through so much. What did he ever do to deserve all this?

Geordi's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of sniffling. Slowly, the chief engineer looked up, afraid he already knew what he would see. Data's emotion chip had been on the whole time.

When Geordi looked into his android friend's eyes, tears were streaming down his face, but… _he was smiling_.

"Th-This is amazing…" Data stammered through his tears, "Just twenty minutes, seventeen seconds ago, the possibility of my walking was virtually impossible. Now, my chances have increased five-fold."

There was not a hint of sarcasm in the android's voice. His relief and joy filled every corner of Sickbay.

Gerodi and Dr. Crusher exchanged glances. Guinan stood silently to the side.

"Thank you, doctor… Geordi," Data nodded to the doctor and chief engineer. He did not seem to notice the air of stunned silence between the two.

* * *

Data sat in his isolinear chair before a set of parallel bars. Shifting his weight to his right, he placed his right palm on the seat of the chair and used his left hand to grip the left bar.

Having just finished a three hour long physical therapy session with Dr. Crusher, he immediately went to Holodeck 3 to continue the session. (Leaving an exhausted doctor and five worn-out physical therapists in his wake). The marathon physical therapy session produced no other successful signals in his leg, but the android was undaunted. Dr. Crusher opened her mouth to say something just before Data left Sickbay, but she didn't have the heart to say what was on her mind.

Using all his upper arm strength he hoisted his right arm onto the other bar. Immediately, the bars sagged and warped under his immense strength.

The android chuckled at the damage he caused. It was an overwhelmingly wonderful sensation… to laugh again; even if it were just for five point seven seconds. "Computer, straighten parallel bars and increase strength by fifty percent."

The bars returned to his original shape and the andorid's grip no longer dented the bars.

The bars, just tall enough to give the android support while standing, became the lifeline on which the android depended on to travel; without the aid of his isolinear chair.

Data shifted his weight from one hand to the next, traveling down the length of the bars. Each time his hands gripped the bars, his foot would touch the ground. Each time, with all his strength, he tried to move his leg an inch, a millimeter, a nanometer… some amount of movement, but it did not.

The successful signal pulsated with activity, but it was like a small child trying to make himself be heard in a stadium of thousands of people; it was just too weak.

Data reached the end of the parallel bars and with some struggle, he put his entire weight on one hand, placed both hands on one bar, and gripped the other bar so he faced the other direction.

Data repeated this process over and over, but it seemed more like he was strengthening his upper body than repairing his damaged legs. As he traveled down the length of the bars over and over with his hands, a nagging sense of doubt tickled the back of his positronic brain. Would he ever regain his ability to walk?

He struggled down the length of the parallel bars, even pushing his legs with one hand to at least provoke some movement in them. Each time his doubt rose, he pushed even harder.

Soon, Holodeck 3 echoed with the groans and grunts of the struggling android.

* * *

Data rolled his chair to station at Ops. Picard followed the android with his eyes and his expression softened. Data has asked Picard permission to continue his duties as second officer of the Enterprise . Picard didn't hesitate to say "yes."

The Enterprise 's destination filled the viewscreen. A beautiful blue planet stood prominently in front with light purple streaks across its surface.

"The Federation shuttle Orion crashed on this M-class planet, called the Allurian, twenty seven hours, ten seconds ago. Although the weather is currently calm, the Allurian is known to have unexpected and violent storms." Data explained, already assessing the situation.

"Commander," Picard addressed his first officer, "take an away team and try to find survivors. You'll have to move fast. The calm weather might not last long."

He then tapped his commbadge.

"Lieutenant O'Brien, have a lock on the away team and be ready to beam them up at any sign of trouble."

"Aye, sir."

Riker rose from his chair, picking his away team on his way to the turbolift.

"Worf… Dat…" Riker's voice trailed off and he immediately cringed. He was so used to having Data on his away team, but this mission required speed; months ago, that would have been the very reason Riker would have chosen Data. As Riker glanced at the android, Data slowly turned around in his isolinear chair.

"Thank you Commander, but I will not be an adequate addition to your away team. I will only slow down your pace by twenty minutes, eighteen seconds."

Riker swallowed hard and reluctantly nodded.

"I'm sorry, Data," he whispered just before the turbolift doors closed in front of him and Worf.

A deep pain hit Picard in his gut. Although Data had said that he wished to continue as a Starfleet officer, he also said something else. Data continued to say that at the first indication that his inability to walk would compromise the safety of the Enterprise or his crew, he would resign for good.

Data turned back around and continued controlling Ops. Although his emotion chip was turned off, the tiniest pang of sadness made its way into his mind. But he pushed it back with all his strength.

* * *

A gentle wind brushed against the android's cheek and he sun kissed his face with warmth. But Data didn't seem to notice. He stared off distantly as his positronic brain retrieved file after file, memory after memory.

"Can we build something later?" the young Timothy's voice echoed. It was on board the Enterprise in Data's quarters. Data was teaching Timothy how to build a model of the Dokkaran temple; an _exact_ model of the Dokkaran temple and, although he didn't know it, Timothy was teaching Data that being precise wasn't always the way to go.

"I really miss them," Timothy whispered, another memory making its way into Data's conscious memory. Data sat silently across from Timothy as he stared at a miniature 3D image of his parents. A heavy silence descended in the room as Timothy shed tears. Back then, without emotions, Data didn't know what to say. Back then, he wished that he was built with emotions so that he may help Timothy in some way. However, now, with his emotion chip on, he realized that there really was nothing he could have said; but he had a feeling that just being there for Timothy was enough.

A procession of people filed into the seats around the android. All, including Data, were wearing black.

Data sat silently as friends, former teachers, Starfleet officers, and the Enterprise senior staff spoke. He kept his emotion chip on and found it hard to keep it activated as all the people whose lives Tim touched shared their personal memories of him.

Soon, it was time for him to speak. Data's internal wiring seemed to shiver with nervousness, though he didn't know why. He rolled his way to the podium, which automatically lowered and rose to the height of the speaker.

However, once the podium lowered to the height at which he was sitting, Data placed his hands on the podium and leaned on it until he was in a standing position.

"Computer, raise podium."

The podium rose obediently until the bottom of Data's feet touched the ground and he was in a full standing position. The last moments of Tim's life, he had seen his friend lie helplessly on the floor of the Borg Cube. At his funeral, Data would stand. He did not want his friend to see him in that state again. Although Tim was not present, the android has a feeling his friend was there.

Data swallowed hard before he began. This was a lot harder than he had anticipated.

"Ensign Tim was, is, and always will be, my friend."

Already tears began to well in the android's eyes and he found it had to speak.

"He… He has told me that he had learned a lot from me and that if it were not for me, he would not have gone this far. He would not have enrolled in Starfleet and become one of the most heroic officers I have ever known.

"Now, as I access files of memories with him, I realize that I have learned from him as well. I have learned that building a model of a house or a ship does not always involve precise calculations; that one does not have to be able to taste a shake to enjoy sharing a drink with them, that in painting, you do not always have to have exact colors, and that… I really do talk too much sometimes.

A soft murmur of chuckles broke amongst the subdued audience.

"I have been amazed at Tim's strength, courage, and tenacity. Despite all that he has been through, he has survived. Many people turn against the world without parents to guide them. Not Tim. He has become a friend, comrade, hero, and a fine Starfleet officer. He died doing what he loved. He was so happy when he was accepted into Starfleet Academy . When he became an ensign on the Enterprise , I thought he would literally touch the ceiling; he was jumping so high. His parents would have been proud. And I am sure that they are embracing him now."

Data glanced at the closed casket with a Starfleet flag draped over it. Though Ensign Tim's body was hidden, Data had could picture exactly how he looked. His friend would still be bearing the deep burn on the side of his head. His body would forever bear the wound that Borg Queen inflicted upon him; the very wound that killed him.

Data bit his lower lip, but it was no use. A cascade of tears finally broke the andorid's resolve. He had been fighting to maintain his composure, but he couldn't fight back the tears any longer.

"I-I am so sorry!" the android managed to say as he faced the casket bearing his friend, "I know it's not my fault, but I still wish I had done something to prevent you from being hit. I-I a-am sorry."

By now, the andorid's entire body was shaking from the sobs. Data's strong grip on the podium loosened and his standing position collapsed. Quickly, Data's legs, which had no strength to support his body, gave out from under him and he fell.

Riker, who also had tears in his eyes, bolted from his chair. But before the first officer could reach the android, Data caught himself.

For two point three seconds, Data looked down at the ground, wondering what had happened. His left and right knees were bent, but the balls of his feet were firmly planted on the ground. As tears fell down Data's cheeks, he gasped at the sight of his legs. He was _kneeling_. Though both legs trembled badly, Data's legs were holding his weight. It wasn't until then when Data realized that both legs had new signals making their way down to his feet. Brand new signals pulsated with activity, struggling to keep Data's weight steady. The android's legs held their position for three point seven seconds before they finally lost their strength and gave out completely.

By this time, Riker, Geordi, Picard, and Dr. Crusher were at Data's side.

"Data, are you alright?" Gerodi asked as Riker moved to help Data up.

"… Ye-Yes," Data stammered through his tears, "I am fine."

A flood of emotions hit the android at once. From grief over his beloved friend to the joy of his legs supporting his weight for the first time in months, there were many reasons for the android's tears; none of which he could explain in a coherent sentence. The emotions were just too much.

* * *

The El-Aurien behind the bar smiled at the officer who had just entered Ten Forward. It had been eight months since the first signal successfully reached down Data's leg. Now, the android was walking with the aid of isolinear sensor crutches. When Data first used them, he was leaning heavily on them and dragging his legs along with him. Now, although his pace was still slow, Data was walking more and more under his own power. Only a slight limp could be seen as Data made his way across the bar to the table where Geordi was seated.

Geordi and Data had not even made their first moves in 3D chess when they were interrupted.

"Commander Data? May I speak with you? It's um… kind of important." a meek voice arose from the side of the table. Data and Gerodi looked up to see Lieutenant Mitchell address Data with a lowered head and timid glance.

"… Am I interrupting something?"

"Ye-… No," Data said, quickly correcting himself. Gerodi couldn't help but smile. His friend was catching on more and more to human emotion and all the subtleties that go with it.

"Not at all," Geordi said. He still was unaware of the confrontation the lieutenant initiated against his friend. Data had not told his best friend. Since his encounter with the Borg, Data had become more attentive to his friends' and crewmates' emotions; whether his emotion chip was on or off. Seeing Geordi's concern over him after his return to the Enterprise , Data did not want to worry his friend even more.

"I'll beat you at 3D chess later," Geordi smiled at Data.

Lieutenant Mitchell eased into the seat and took a deep, shuddering breath. After several moments, he finally gathered the courage to look Data in the eyes. Glancing at the crutches, he was reminded of just how far Data had come.

"Lieutenant?" Data asked, breaking Mitchell from his revere. Data addressed the lieutenant with the same steady tone he addressed all officers; not a hint of animosity could be detected in the andorid's voice. Mitchell grit his teeth ruefully. It would almost be better if Data were angry with him. For a few seconds the lieutenant looked into the eyes of the android and took a deep breath.

"Commander Data… I owe you a big apology. I never should have said the things I said to you."

"You are referring to the time you called me a 'worthless, unfeeling android.'"

Lieutenant Mitchell cringed.

"Yes," he replied, looking down at the table. He then looked at Data's eyes again, "There are no words to express how sorry and regretful I am that I said that to you."

"You are referring to a conversation we shared eleven months two days ago."

"You mean, 'Why did it take me so long to apologize?" Mitchell smiled ruefully, translating the andorid's unique speak.

"… I dunno," the lieutenant sighed, "all the way up until recently, I thought you were just a machine. I didn't see you for who you are. And to tell you the truth, I never gave you a chance…

"I felt this way up until Captain Picard explained what happened on the Borg Cube to Admiral Vincennes.

"You withstood torture after torture from the Borg Queen, and yet you never released the Enterprise 's security codes," Lieutenant Mitchell continued, incredulously. He was now looking at Data with admiration.

"When I heard that, at first I couldn't believe it. But then, I saw you in that isolinear chair. It was then when I realized how wrong I had been… I was so ashamed of my behavior toward you, that for a long time, I couldn't even look at you, let alone apologize face-to-face.

"At Tim's funeral, when you were giving your eulogy, I realized I couldn't wait any longer. My guilt had been eating inside of me for too long. I had to give you the apology you deserve.

Lieutenant Mitchell paused to take deep breaths and gather his thoughts.

"Just before Tim left to join the away team that would try and rescue you, I was begging him not to go. I kept telling him that he was being ridiculous, risking his life for an _android_. That's when he turned to me and said, 'I have to go. He's my friend. Someday, I hope you'll understand.'

The lieutenant was now taking shuddering breaths, almost fighting back tears.

"I just wish it didn't take his death for me to finally understand."

* * *

"This shore leave will be a great rest for everyone," Riker said to Picard, smiling. The Enterprise had not taken shore leave for months and crewmen were showing signs of fatigue.

Geordi stood at the back of the Bridge, silently agreeing with Riker. He was studying readouts from the screen, but after a while, they all seemed to blur together and say the same things.

"They say that Verdetta III is a veritable paradise. Tropical waters, warm weather, and naturally lush green plants; it's as close to Earth's paradise as you can get." Picard remarked.

"I can't wait." Riker smiled.

The turbolift doors at the back of the Bridge hissed open. Gerodi glanced up, then did a double-take.

"Data!"

Commander Data was standing in the turbolift. For the first time in over a year, Data stepped onto the Bridge on his own two feet, under his own power. Both Riker and Picard bolted from their seats at the sound of Geordi's outburst.

Gerodi's soul swelled with pride and relief as he saw Data walk down to the front of the Bridge with the same ease he had so long ago.

Jean-Luc Picard couldn't stop smiling. The usual stoic captain was grinning from ear to ear.

"Congratulations, Commander Data," he said, outstretching his hand. Data took Picard's hand in his and shook. Even the warrior-tough Klingon, Worf, smiled at the sight of his friend walking.

All this time, Riker stood behind Picard, mouth agape in utter amazement.

"Commander," Data simply addressed the first officer with a nod of his head.

"Congratulations, Data," Riker said, finally finding his voice.

"Data…" Geordi said after he had made his way to his friend's side, "it's good to have you back."

"Thank you, Geordi."

The rest of the officers on the Bridge couldn't stop smiling. They looked at the Data as if they had never seen an android before.

Data was about to return to his usual position at Ops, but Gerodi put a hand on his shoulder.

"How did you do this, Data?" admiration filling his voice.

"With four hundred, twenty seven hours of intense physical therapy…"

"No, I mean… how did you not give up? You had such confidence even when your chance of walking was only at five percent. How did you find the will to keep going? I don't know if I would've had the strength to go on."

"If I focused my mind on the 95 chance that I would not walk and the fact that I was tortured by the Borg, I would not have continued my physical therapy sessions. Instead, I initiated a feedback loop on the fact that I have a chance to walk, however small, and that if I did not at least try to walk, the Borg Queen would have victimized me again.

"I have found that if one, as humans would say, 'keeps life in perspective,' it make even the most difficult of situations easier to deal with. Although the Borg Queen took away my ability to walk, she did not take away my ability to speak, hear… see. By focusing on the abilities I did have, I was able to intensify my physical therapy sessions and 'find the strength to go on.'"

"It really is good to have you back," Geordi said, patting Data on the back.

Data simply nodded.

The android then stepped toward his chair. For a few moments, he simply stood there. It was as if he had just realized his newly regained ability. He had just walked down the length of the Bridge. Just a few months ago, he was not able to take one step on his own. Now, he could run with the same superhuman speed he once had.

Suddenly, Data felt a single tear travel down his cheek; yet he was smiling. And his emotion chip was off.

As quickly as the tear appeared, it rolled down his cheek and out of sight just as quickly.

"Everything okay, Data?" Picard asked.

"Yes, sir."

"Take us out of orbit to Verdetta III."

Data sat into his chair and settled back.

"Aye sir."

He punched in a series of controls and the Enterprise sped away, becoming a sapphire blur in the star dappled universe.

* * *

_That completes my story:) I hope you liked it. If you did or didn't please review. Once again, my thanks so much to all reviewers. It is the reviewers who make writing so rewarding. _

_Munckincat Out._


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